The Walking Mac
by Cynoodn
Summary: Same story except this time, from Daryl's sister's POV. I'm not good with summaries, so just go in and read. (:
1. Who are you?

**Hello!** **This** **is my very first published story, I hope its not that bad...**

 **Some of the dialogue and character behaviour may be changed to tell the story completely from the OC's point of view.**

 **It follows the series' original plot, but its not exactly the same!**

 **If Something was missing in the story let me know in the reviews.**

 **If you like it, review more!**

 **There may be some grammar mistakes, I promise I'll fix it later.**

 **In case you need more description about the environment I'll add it, or let you know where I got the idea from.**

 **Let me know what you think!**

 **I own nothing. No like no read.**

 **-Cynoodn**

* * *

The world has gone to shit. I know, I'm a girl and I shouldn't talk like that. But who cares?

We found Merle a few weeks ago. I was really happy to see him.

He ended up in jail for... You know.. Meth business...

Anyway, dad died when the dead started walking. Uncle Jess too. One of those things bit him so Daryl had to finish him up.

He was just our half-uncle but he was nice to me. I felt bad when they told me.

My brothers are fighting again. It's dark. They are standing next to the fireplace. I am sitting in the other side.

We found a camp nearby and Merle is planning to rob them.

We just have one tent so I sleep with one of my brothers every night. I miss my own room and privacy but fuck that shit! Welcome to the new age!

I am bored. And tired.

"Will you two ever stop fighting? You started this discussion yesterday, shut up already" Both look at me. They seem surprised.

"Young lady finally talks! Princess has been quiet since..." Merle thinks for a moment "...three days ago?"

"Actually, I talked to Daryl this morning. He told me you are planning to rob that camp." Daryl keeps quiet.

"It's brilliant, huh!" Is he feeling proud of this?

"It's stupid!"

"Oh come on, Mac! Think a little."

"No, Merle! You think a little. Give them a chance!" I feel annoyed

Daryl finally says "We need to survive somehow, and if this is the way to so, we are going to do it ."

"What?!" What the fuck? They will end up getting us killed!

"Listen. We know this ain't paradise for you, Mac. But... " I interrupt him

"No, fuck you! You don't know shit!" I stand up.

"Fine! Then what do you want us to do?!"

"You asking her now, baby brother?!"

"Do whatever the fuck you want then!" I think Daryl feels confused now. He knows Merle's idea is wrong but he'll do what Merle says. He always does.

"You need to accept that's a stupid idea!" I say to them

"Tell me why we need to give them a fucking chance! You need to understand this is survival!"

"Exactly! Shut up and think! Jeez, those drugs ain't helping!" Daryl is quiet again. He stares at me. "You said this is about survival, right? Safety in numbers and shit! They have guns, ammo..."

"They have a cop!"

"A cop that may be useful! We fucking need a group!"

Merle looks really angry by now. He's about to say something else when Daryl stops him.

"Come on, Merle. She's right, we should give them a chance." Merle looks at Daryl for a moment. Is he thinking about it? "Whatever!" He says "but they fuck up, I take their shit and go."

"Finally!"

"Come on."Daryl points his finger at me "You're going hunting with me tomorrow" Daryl goes inside the tent. I follow him

"You better don't fuck things up, Mac!" I hear Merle saying

"Whatever." I say and lay next to Daryl.

* * *

Daryl and I are back from our hunting trip.

We got nothing. No squirrel for today.

"That's a new record!" Merle jokes "I've never seen so many squirrels in my life! Nice job Darlina, Mac is learning fast!"

"Fuck you, Merle." I whisper

"We'll get some next time." Daryl is not the patient one, but when it comes to hunting he takes all the time needed to teach me. I like that.

Daryl says I shouldnt be rude to Merle. Maybe he's right, Merle has always been my favourite, plus, he's the one who has always taken care of me. At least when he was home, Daryl sometimes acts like I'm not there.

We pack our stuff and get near the camp we saw two days ago.

* * *

Everyone comes around us. The cop talks to us, he has a shotgun.

We let Merle do the talking. Daryl stands besides him in case he needs to say something while I stand a few steps behind them in case we fuck up. Theres nothing for me to say anyway, is it?

"What are your names again?"

"Name's Merle Dixon. This is my baby brother, Daryl." He points at Daryl and then back to where I am "That's Princess Dixon. Mac"

"Agent Shane Walsh." He says "no time for telling you everybody's names, but you'll get them. We have a place for one more tent in the back of the camp over there. I don't know if that's enough for you and your daughter." He points at the place.

"We're siblings." Daryl talks for the first time.

Shane says "Feel free to unpack your stuff, then." He walks away.

* * *

We've been here for a week now. My brothers help with some things in the camp.

Daryl tries to get used to the new people. I know it's hard for him to have others around and not being grumpy.

Merle doesn't seem to care. Merle is just... Merle. I am surprised he even helps.

I am just too shy to talk to anyone. I can kick my siblings in the ass and tell them to go fuck themselves if I want to but I can't talk to others. I prefer to stick to Merle, or going hunting with Daryl.

Some of the group members are talking with Shane. I recognise some of them.

Glenn, Andrea, a black guy... I think his name has to do with a dog, My brothers, and I don't know the other names.

I better give them some space.

I don't know what to do so I just walk away from them to go in our tent when I hear a soft voice calling me.

"Mac?" It's Lori. Shane's... Girlfriend? I know he's not Carl's father, but I've seen them together.

"Yeah?" I walk in her direction and stop just in front of her.

"I like your name. I've never heard of anyone named Mac."

"Thank you."

"Why are you always with your brothers and never talk to anyone else?" she talks softly. I like that.

"I don't know."

"How old are you, sweetie?"

"fifteen"

"Carl and Sophia are twelve. I understand if you don't want to play with them, but you could hang around Amy and Andrea. Have some fun with them. Make friends. Maybe even talk to Carol and me. "

"I know. I'm sorry. I just don't know how to do that. I've never had any friends..." I feel ashamed of it but its the truth. I don't know why I feel like I can't lie to her.

"You don't have to be sorry about it"she's really nice to me. I like Carl's mom. "How come you've never had any friends?"

"Well... I'm just not used to be around a lot of people. Just Merle, Daryl, and some of their friends"

"You just need some time then." Lori smiles softly "Take your time and talk to them when you're ready, ok?" I nod "promise me you'll talk to them"

"I promise." She smiles again. I smile back. I can hear Merle calling me. "I should go now."

"If you need anything just tell me, alright?"

"Alright. Thanks Lori." I walk away

Merle and Daryl walk next to our tent and I follow. Daryl sits there to clean his crossbow.

"What are you doing near bitch queen?" Merle asks

"She said I should be around others more often." Daryl smirks and Merle keeps going

"And you want that, princess?"

"I don't know, looks fun. But they are so different."

"Of course you ain't like them! Look at them!" We turn to some of the group people. "whats the difference between you and them?"

"They have normal families?" Merle sighs and Daryl laughs softly

"No, not that. What else?"

"Hell, I don't know. They had friends before all this shit happened? Maybe a fancy home and a perfect childhood? This doesn't make any sense, Merle. Fucking tell me what you mean!"

"That's what he's trying to say" says Daryl. I look at him. "They come from a different environment. They're weak."

"Maybe." He's right. They don't know nothing.

I look at Merle. "Fucking kids ain't smart enough to kill a walker. You sure you want to hang with a bunch of pussies?"

"I'm sure that's what I'm supposed to be doing. That's what people do. Besides I'm just a kid, remember?"

"You may be a kid physically. But you're more intelligent and mature than Merle" Daryl stands and puts his crossbow inside the tent. "You can do what you want, Mac. Don't listen to him. He's a dumb ape."

"Ok." I look down for a second.

Daryl goes inside the tent. Is he going to hunt tomorrow? He never goes to sleep this early unless he's going hunting.

"Merle?" He growls as an answer. "Can I ask you something?"

"You already did." He laughs at me. Yup, that's Merle Dixon.

"Ha. Ha."

"Go on then. Ask."

"Were you going to tell me something important?" Merle looks at me with a serious expression.

"I'm going back to Atlanta tomorrow morning." What?! I am shocked. Why would he want to go back?!

"But..."

"You'll go hunting with Darlina. You wont even notice I was gone."

"Fucking bullshit! I don't want to go hunting!"

"Language, Princess! Daryl and I Decided that you ain't staying here with these bunch of pussies. We dont want you to get too used to them."

"Alright. anything else?"

"Nothing you should know about"

"I don't want you to go"

"Sorry no can do baby girl."

''But Atlanta's full of those things!"

"Nothing will happen to good ol' Merle. Why? Tell me why. You already know the answer." I sigh.

"Nothing kills Merle but Merle."

"That's right. Now go inside the tent before I lose my patience."

"Merle?" he grunts as a response. ''Be careful"

''Night kiddo''

I turn and go inside the tent with Daryl without a word.

He's laying with his back facing me. I know he's awake but avoiding any kind of conversation. He heard everything we said.

I lay next to him just like every night and close my eyes.

* * *

We've been walking for a few hours so the camp is far away from us. That means Daryl planning to get something big.

I like that idea. To be honest I like hunting with Daryl.

I like to piss him off sometimes.

"Lets see..." He mumbles "what's an important thing to do when hunting"

"Knowing how to track"

"And what are you looking for when you're tracking?"

"An animal" i answer laughing. Like I said I like to piss him off.

He turns and looks at me with an annoyed look in his eyes. I find it amusing.

"This isn't a game, Mac"

"I know. I was just kidding."

"Then answer"

I try to remember what he said last time. "umm... Footprints?"

"You asking or telling me?"

"Telling you."

"Alright, Footprints. Those are important and you ain't getting nowhere if you can't identify them."

"How so?" I follow him. I'm looking down following his footprints carefully.

"You need to know what you're tracking. Otherwise you may follow more than one animal at a time and that way you won't get a thing."

"Makes sense" he suddenly stops, I wasn't expecting that. He raises his index finger to his lips telling me to keep quiet.

"Don't concentrate fully on the footprints. You can't completely look down ignoring the environment." He whispers. I nod. "Look around you. Pay attention to your surroundings"

"Alright."

"Look and listen carefully. Anything important right now?"

I try to listen to everything without moving. I hear a lot of birds and..

"Theres a squirrel a few trees behind me, right?" I whisper. Daryl takes his crossbow quickly and shoots. I turn around to see the dead squirrel pinned to the tree by the arrow. I smile and look at him

"Now go get it" I do as he says and go back to him. He ties the animal with the other two he caught earlier. He turns and keeps walking. "Lets go"

We keep walking and looking for something big to hunt.

We only see squirrels. At the end of the day we have a lot of those.

* * *

Its dark now. We build a campfire to rest.

Daryl skins two of the squirrels and puts them on the fire to cook them.

"We need to find more of these."

"Yes sir."

After a while he takes the squirrels and gives one to me. We eat slow and quietly for a while until were almost done eating.

"Daryl." He looks at me "do you think Merle's back yet?"

"He should be. Why?"

"Just asking."

"Merle's a tough son of a bitch. Nothing will happen to him."

"I know that." I'm finishing eating my squirrel. Daryl already finished his

"Then what is it?"

"I am just worried. I would be if you were in Atlanta and Merle was here with me."

"Merle should be in the camp by now. Don't worry about him." I nod and finish eating.

"Do you want me to keep watch after you?" I ask

"Nah, Get some rest. You did a good job today."

"Really?"

"I'll call you if I need something."

"Ok." I like how my brother forgets his grumpiness when we're out hunting. He even jokes and laughs sometimes. I walk to to the other side of the little camp to rest a little.

In my dreams I hear dry leaves cracking.

* * *

I open my eyes quickly and sit. "You heard that?" I whisper

"Uh-huh" Daryl is standing near me with his crossbow ready.

The sun is just starting to rise so its not so dark anymore. Theres nothing left of the fire but ashes.

I stand and take the hunting rifle near Daryl's stuff. We are quiet and ready to shoot at anything that may be dangerous when we see a deer jumping out and running away from us. Daryl shoots. The arrow lands on the deer's back

"What the hell was that?!" I am confused. I've never seen anything like that.

"Hello breakfast." He says taking the remaining squirrels from yesterday.

"What?"

"Lets lead that son of a bitch near the camp"

"Alright." We start walking and following the footprints in the dirt. I can't really see them and lose track many times but Daryl keeps going.

* * *

We see the deer and walk towards it as quiet as possible. The sun is starting to heat the woods a lot and its not even midday yet.

The deer stopped running and is eating some kind of plant. Daryl shoots and the arrow lands on its side. The deer runs.

We run towards it again until we find it.

"Here" he gives me his crossbow. "Shoot"

"But I don't know how to..."

"Just aim carefully." I do as he says. "Try not to move too much. Arrows are lighter than bullets so wind moves them easily. You have one chance." Damn this thing is heavy

I breathe in and out slowly and deeply and nod slightly and I pull the trigger.

The arrow flies and lands on the deer's upper leg near its butt.

"This thing is heavy as shit" I say giving the crossbow back to its owner. He smiles.

"You literally shoved an arrow up its ass! you should be proud of yourself!" He looks happy with the results. "Come on. We're near camp. We need to kill that motherfucker."

We keep going

* * *

There are voices around. We're incredibly close to the camp but we haven't seen the deer again.

The footprints lead us to the voices. Maybe it ran into camp. Daryl walks behind me. He wants me to track the deer.

He steps on a dry stick and it breaks. The voices stop. I keep walking, climb a rock and exit the woods just to see the deer on the floor next to a walker and Shane pointing a shotgun at me. The walker is headless and the deer's neck is open and half eaten. I walk towards it ignoring the people lowering their weapons.

"Oh, come on!" I feel frustrated

"Son of a bitch! That's my deer! Look at it!" I hear Daryl say. "All gnawed on by this Filthy, disease-bearing, motherless poxy bastard!" He walks past me and kicks the walker with each word.

"Calm down, son That's not helping." Dale says

"What do you know about it, old man? Why don't you take that stupid hat and go back to On Golden Pond? We've been tracking this deer for miles! Gonna drag it back to camp, cook us up some venison." I sigh. Daryl looks at me.

"What do you think? Do you think we can cut around this chewed up part right here?"

Before I can answer Shane says "I would not risk that."

Daryl sighs "That's a damn shame."

"We got some squirrel" I tell them

"Yeah. about a dozen or so. That'll have to do."

I nod at my brothers words and start walking to the camp when the walker's head tries to bite my foot. I gasp and jump back. Amy and Andrea feel disgusted and walk away.

"Come on people, what the hell? It's gotta be the brain. Don't y'all know nothing?" Daryl shoots the head and puts an arm around my shoulders "Come on, lets look for the ugly ass ape" we walk to the camp with the others following us.

Daryl removes his arm and I walk besides him.

"Merle!" I call my older brother hoping to see him come out joking and annoying others as always. No reply.

"Merle! Get your ugly ass out here! I got us some squirrel! Let's stew 'em up." Daryl tries. No reply.

Shane runs to us "Daryl, just slow up a bit. I need to talk to you."

"About what?" I'm starting to panic. Where's Merle? Daryl and Shane look at each other in a way that makes me feel uneasy.

"About Merle." Shane looks at me and back to Daryl "There was a. There was a problem in Atlanta."

"He dead?"

"We're not sure."

"He either is or he ain't!"

I have no idea on what to do. They will fight. I know it.

A guy comes from behind Shane. Who is he? He says "No easy way to say this, so I'll just say it."

"Who are you?" I ask

"Rick Grimes."

"Rick Grimes?" Daryl looks like he's about to explode. "you got something you want to tell us?"

"Your brother was a danger to us all, so I handcuffed him on a roof, hooked him to a piece of metal. He's still there."

"What?!" What the fuck is wrong with this guy?!

"Hold on. Let me process this." Daryl turns and walks a bit. Then he comes back letting his anger out. "You're saying you handcuffed my brother to a roof. And you left him there?!"

"Yeah."

As I expected Daryl exploded. He throws the squirrels in Rick's direction and tries to tackle and beat him. Shane comes and tackles him first

"Hey!" Someone shouts.

"Watch the knife!" I hear T-dog and see Daryl trying to stab Rick.

Shane grabs him and he grunts "Okay." He says

"You'd best let me go!"

"Nah, I think it's better if I don't." Shane replies softly.

"I think it is" I find myself pointing his own shotgun at his head. What the fucking fuck?!

I hear some of the people gasp.

I feel my heart beating fast. Im actually kind of scared.

"Put the shotgun down" Rick takes his own gun aiming it to my head.

"Rick!" I hear Lori's voice while I keep watching Shane

I try to be calm. I know he wont shoot. I know they will let Daryl go.

...hopefully...

"You better not shoot asshole!" Daryl shouts.

"Put the shotgun down!" Rick repeats and Lori comes to his side

"Rick please" she tells him "Dont do this."

Rick looks at her

"She's just a kid, Rick. I got it."

Rick walks in front of Daryl with his gun still up to me, but looks at my brother

Lori walks to me. "Mac, you have to put the shotgun down"

"Choke hold's illegal." Daryl tells Shane.

"You can file a complaint." He answers.

Daryl grunts

Lori tries again. "Listen. I know you're angry for all this. But you have to trust me and put that shotgun down. He won't let go of him until you do" I look at Daryl. he looks back at me.

"I'd like to have a calm discussion on this topic. Do you think we can manage that?" Rick asks my brother. Daryl keeps staring at me. "Do you think we can manage that?"

He nods slightly. "Yeah."

I put the shotgun down and Lori takes it. Rick lowers his gun and Shane lets Daryl go.

He breathes a few times and stands up.

"Your brother does not work and play well with others." Lori and I walk next to the RV. I sit on the entrance and bury my face on my knees with my arms wrapped around them.

"It's not Rick's fault." T-dog says "I had the key. I dropped it.

"You couldn't pick it up?" I ask him

"Well, I dropped it in a drain."

"If it's supposed to make me feel better, it don't." Daryl walks a few steps

"Well, maybe this will. Look, I chained the door to the roof So the geeks couldn't get at him - With a padlock.

"It's gotta count for something." Rick says

"To Hell with all of you! Just tell me where he is so's I can go get him."

"He'll show you. Isn't that right?" Lori says.

I lift my head.

* * *

I'm sitting next to Daryl. He says I need to stay here and he'll go get Merle.

I do not like the idea but theres not much I can do about it.

He says I need to stay near Carol and let Shane and Lori take care of their business. I know that. Looks like Rick and Shane have a lot to talk about with Lori.

We hear them come walking. Shane doesn't seem to like the idea of Rick going back to get Merle. Bullshit.

"I'm going back." Rick says and Shane sighs

"So that's it, huh? You're just gonna walk off? Just to hell with everybody else?

" I'm not saying to hell with anybody Not you, Shane; Lori least of all."rick turns and looks at him.

"Tell her that."

"She knows."

"Well, look, I don't, okay, Rick?" Shane looks desperate.

He needs a new girlfriend. ASAP...

"So could you just. Could you throw me a bone here, man? Could you just tell me why? Why would you risk your life for a douche bag like Merle Dixon?

"Hey!" I say

"Choose your words more carefully." Daryl warns Shane

"No, I did." He says "Douche bag's what I meant." I roll my eyes and keep playing with my unloaded gun "Merle Dixon. The guy wouldn't give you a glass of water - if you were dying of thirst."

"What he would or wouldn't do doesn't interest me. I can't let a man die of thirst and exposure." I'm starting to like this Rick guy. "We left him like an animal caught in a trap. That's no way for anything to die, let alone a human being."

"So you and Daryl, that's your big plan?" Rick looks at Glenn

"Oh, come on!" Glenn tries to protest but Rick says.

"You know the way. You've been there before In and out, no problem. You said so yourself. It's not fair of me to ask I know that, but I'd feel a lot better with you along. I know she would too." We look at Lori.

"That's just great." I say.

"Now you're gonna risk three men, huh?" Shane looks more pissed now

"Four." T-dog says

Daryl huffs and looks at me "My day just gets better and better, don't it?"

I bite my lip nervously.

"You see anybody else here stepping up to save your brother's cracker ass?"

I smile and Daryl talks "Why you?"

"You wouldn't even begin to understand. You don't speak my language."

"Maybe Mac here does." He keeps working on his crossbow.

"That's four." Rick says looking at Shane

"It's not just four. You're putting every single one of us at risk. Just know that, Rick." Rick nods. "Come on, you saw that walker. It was here. It was in camp. They're moving out of the cities. They come back, we need every able body we've got. We need 'em here. We need 'em to protect the camp."

"It seems to me what you really need most here - are more guns." I am tired of listening. I stand and walk to our tent.

* * *

When Daryl finishes cleaning his crossbow he comes in. He says he'll bring Merle back and that he needs me to stay out of trouble. I will try.

"Every time you say that, something bad happens to me." I say with a worried look in my eyes.

"Not this time." He says walking out. "You behave, ok?"

He nods and I nod back.

He walks out of the tent and a few seconds later I hear him shout "Come on, let's go!" Then the truck is gone.

I'm alone in the tent laying on my sleeping bag. I'm looking up staring at nothing. I'm thinking so many things at once. I don't even know what I'm thinking.

I hear someone coming and look at the shadow walking towards the entrance. Is it a walker? I stand and take a knife from Daryl's sleeping bag.

Carol stops just outside the entrance. She sees the knife and looks confused.

"Everything ok?" She speaks softly

"Y-Yeah. I just... I thought you were a walker." I put the knife down. "Come in"

She steps in seeming a little nervous. "You are a little too violent for a fifteen year old."

"We've been through a lot. I'm sorry"

"I know. Theres no need to apologise. I think I know what you mean."

"You do?" I am now curious. She really does? How?

"Pretty much, yeah. Sophia and I have been through a lot too."

"It's cool to have someone who understands near you." I say. She smiles "So.. Do you need anything? Daryl said I should stay around you"

"Oh yeah. I was thinking that maybe you could come with us to wash some clothes. You don't have to wash anything but maybe it'll distract your mind from what happened to your brother." I look down for a bit. I feel like shit. I want Merle and Daryl back.

"Yeah. Its just us."

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to..."

"No. Its ok. You're right. Maybe I just need to think of something else"

"Laundry always helps me and maybe it'll help you too."

I look at her. I think I can trust this woman. For some reason I feel like she really understands.

I smile and think of it a little bit. "Ok"

Carol smiles back. "We should go now. Ed hates when I make him wait"

* * *

I follow Carol quietly until I remember Sophia.

"Sophia ain't coming?" I ask while we walk down the hill

"No. Let her have fun. The last few weeks have been hard for us. Specially her"

I nod. "Yeah. Craziest two months of my life."

When we go down the hill I see Shane and Carl trying to catch frogs. I approach them and tell Carol I'll catch up with her. She walks to where the other women are.

"Shane. Hi Carl."

"Hi, Mac! Wanna catch frogs with us?" Carl looks like he's enjoying. Gross.

"No. Just came here to apologise for almost killing Shane with his own shotgun" I look at the older man.

Shane laughs "Am I hearing right? A Dixon apologising?" I look at him unamused. "Yeah. Sorry. Umm..."he clears his throat "Sorry for choking your brother. Its good that you guys protect each other."

"Blood is blood, right? That's all we have left."

"If you say so..." He scratches his head. "Now if you excuse me, we're in the middle of something"

"Oh yeah. Don't mind me. Keep going. I'll just hang with the other ladies back there"

"Good luck!" Carl says as I walk away.

I walk past Ed and make sure to give him a disgusting look which he returns. He reminds me of my dear old man and his, oh so lovely, insults.

I join the others and the first to talk is Andrea. "Look who decided to join us! Dixon-girl herself!"

I sit next to them a little annoyed by the fact that everybody is surprised to see me around them. "Why is everybody surprised when I walk near you? Its not like I'm queen Elizabeth second."

"Oh you DO talk! I thought you Dixon guys could only kill things." They laugh. I just look at them.

"You may not be Queen Elizabeth second. But you sure have a strong character." A black skinned woman says. I think her name is Jacqui but I'm not so sure.

"Well." Amy says "She sure is good at killing stuff! I bet she can kill you with just a stare!"

"What do you mean?" Carol asks

"Yeah!" Andrea continues "you saw how she stared at Ed when she walked past him? You'd sure have balls of steel if you were a man."

"Ok. That's enough." Jacqui says "Carol just managed to get her out of that tent. Don't make her go back. She barely talks, don't make her regret coming" I smile slightly

"Thanks umm.."

"Jacqui." She confirms her name "no problem sweetie. You and your brothers need time to get used to all this. No need to push you."

"That's what Lori said." We are quiet for a second. We hear Shane jumping and shouting like a little kid.

"They're coming, little man! Get 'em! Get that net in there and get 'em!" He says

"So." Andrea talks again and looks at me"How come you and Merle Dixon are family?"

"Do I really have to explain how it works?" The others laugh

"Oh, I know how it works. Trust me." I look at Shane again to hide my embarrassment. "I mean. How old is Merle? You could be his Daughter."

I sigh "alright. If you insist. Merle is 50, Daryl is 35 and I'm 15."

"Wow" Amy looks at me "how old was you dad?"

"Will?" I think for a second "Honestly I have no idea.. Never bothered to ask..It doesn't matter anymore, does it?"

We look at Shane again. He keeps playing with Carl. "What have you got, bad boy? What do you got? What do you got?"

The others keep scrubbing while I lose myself in my thoughts watching the water.

One of them says "I do miss my Maytag." I don't know who it was. I am not paying attention

Another one says "I miss my Benz, my sat nav." I look at them trying who figure out who's talking. Who took me out of my thoughts.

Jacquisays "I miss my coffeemaker with that dual-drip filter and built-in grinder, honey."

Amy says "My computer And texting. Dont you, Mac?"

"I never had that privilege" I mumble.

Silence.

Andrea says "I miss my vibrator." I look at her surprised and turn red like a tomato

"Oh!" Jacqui laughs

"Oh my God!" says Amy. They laugh. I just smile. This is SO awkward. I've never had an open girl talk before.

They stop laughing.

After a little pause Carol says "Me too."

This time I laugh a little too. Its been a long time since last time I laughed. Everything seems cool until Ed comes.

"What's so funny?" He asks. Shit. I'm already tense. My mind gives me flashbacks of Will beating me.

"Just swapping war stories, Ed." Andrea says. She seems relaxed.

"Yeah." He mumbles and stands right behind me. I do not like this situation. I freeze

"Problem, Ed?" Andrea turns and faces him. Mistake. That makes them more angry.

"nothing that concerns you. And you ought to focus on your work. This ain't no comedy club."

Ed keeps watching. I try to ignore it but can't stand it.

Andrea stands up and turns to him. "Ed, tell you what You don't like how your laundry is done, you are welcome to pitch in and do it yourself." The throws the wet clothes at him "Here." She says. Ed throws the clothes back

"Ain't my job, missy."

"Andrea, don't." Carol tries to stop her. I know how this kind of men work. This ain't going to end well.

"What is your job, Ed? Sitting on your ass smoking cigarettes?" Andrea says

"Well, it sure as hell ain't listening to some uppity smart-mouthed bitch. Tell you what Come on." He shoots back and tries to take Carol away with him. "Let's go!" Carol stands.

"I don't think she needs to go anywhere with you, Ed." Andrea says stopping Carol.

"And I say it's none of your business. Come on now. You heard me."

"Carol..." I say. I can't do much about it, also Daryl told me to stay out of trouble. Having to deal with Ed is something he doesn't need right now.

"Mac, please. It doesn't matter." Andrea is still trying to hold her back.

"Hey!" Ed tells her "don't think I won't knock you on your ass just 'cause you're some college-educated cooze, all right?" He looks at Carol with an intimidating look. "Now you come on now or you gonna regret it later."

"So she can show up with fresh bruises later, Ed?" Andrea. Why don't you shut up?! You're going to make it worse!

"Yeah, we've seen them." Jacqui continues.

Ed laughs "Stay out of this. Now come on! You know what? This ain't none of y'all's business. You don't want to keep prodding the bull here, okay? Now I am done talking. Come on!"

"No" Andrea says

I take Carol's hand "Carol, you don't have to..." I tell her, but she mutters something barely understandable. I step back. I know Ed wont take much longer.

One millisecond later he slaps Carol.

"Get off her!" Andrea shouts. The others yell and get Carol away from him.

Shane comes and drags Ed pulling him away from us.

The others hold Carol while Shane beats Ed into a bloody pulp.

Part of me wants to help Carol but my body is frozen. Images of Merle beating the old man after he almost killed me are flashing constantly in my mind.

I can almost feel pain again. How my bones cracked with each kick. The look on Will's friend and how it changed when Daryl pulled him out of the house. The blood on Merle's hands and shirt from beating the old man.

It feels so real again.

I remember the looks on my brothers' faces when they entered the room. When Daryl knelt next to me before I passed out. Now that I think of it he looked scared too.

I am terrified right now but I don't even know why. This doesn't have anything to do with me.

Carol is begging Shane to stop.

I see how desperate she is. I feel bad for her so I start walking.

"Shane, stop" I tell him. He ignores me and keeps beating Ed.

Andrea calls him too but he wont listen. I remember that Merle didn't listen too until Daryl pulled him away from dad.

I approach Shane. I wrap my arms around him and pull slightly "Shane, stop" He keeps going. I know I'm risking myself. He can just beat me but I need to get him away from Ed. "stop! You're killing him!" I say louder as I pull him a little harder.

He stops. He point his index finger at the beaten man. "You put your hands on your wife, your little girl or anybody else in this camp one more time, I will not stop next time." Ed just moans "Do you hear me?" Theres no answer. Shane looks really mad. "Do you hear me?!" He asks again but this time loudly.

Ed Slurs "Yes."

"I'll beat you to death, Ed." He stands. I stand besides him panting. the others let go of Carol. She runs to Ed's side and apologizes a few times. Why?

I look at Shane with a serious look on my eyes. He looks back at me. I've never seen him so angry.

He turns and walks away.

I look at Carol sobbing and then at the others.

Fuck this. I ain't staying here watching how Carol apologizes for something she didn't even do.

I follow Shane.

* * *

I walk back to camp and sit on the RV stairs.

The sun is on top of our heads. Birds are chirping somewhere around.

The weather is hot. Too hot for not looking some shade to sit under it.

I am paying attention to everything around me in case something else happens.

I see how they take Ed to his tent. Sophia looks confused. She stays close to Carol, who's still sobbing.

Andrea and Amy go back down to catch some fish. They take Dale's equipment with them.

Lori and Carl are doing something involving paper. I think she wants him to keep studying. Looks like he's doing homework.

Shane walks around the camp a few times. He keeps staring at Lori. I don't know if he's watching her or looking for walkers. I'm not sure what he's doing.

The latin people talk about their family in Birmingham. Maybe they're leaving.

Jacqui is sitting next to Lori. They're talking. I don't care what they're saying.

Dale comes down from the RV top. He sees me and walks towards me.

"Mac, right?"

"That's me..."

"Just wanted to ask you if you wanted something to eat." Dale says. "You haven't eaten anything since you got here this morning."

"I'm not hungry." I say looking away.

He looks at me for a second "I saw you stopping Shane. You're a strong young lady."

"What does that have to do with food?"

"Listen. You need to keep your strength, and to do that you need to eat. I know you're worried and everything, but I can assure you that Daryl will be back. If someone is surviving the apocalypse it's your brother."

I stay quiet. It's been a hard day. A lot of things have happened in just one morning.

I sigh and nod. Dale decides its best to leave me alone. "Theres some water in the RV and some food if you need it"

I have nothing to say so I just thank him for playing cool.

"No problem" he says before walking away.

I go inside the RV.

I take a bottle of water. I go back outside and sit where I was watching others again. Shane comes and sits next to me still looking a bit upset.


	2. Jim's Dreams

I see Andrea and Amy coming.

Funny. They catch fish like we hunt squirrels.

I'm starting to feel a little hungry but nothing really important. I can wait.

I'll just keep watching them.

The latin guy greets them saying "Ladies Because of you my children will eat tonight. Thank you."

"Thank Dale." Andrea tells him "It's his canoe and gear."

"Mom, look!" Carl looks really happy "Look at all the fish!"

"Where did you two learn to do that?" Lori asks Amy

"Our dad."

Yup. That's what dads do, teach you stuff. Good or bad, they teach you.

"Can you teach me how to do that?" Carl is really amused now. That kid is unstoppable.

"Sure. I'll teach you all about nail knots and stuff." Amy pauses and looks at Lori "If that's okay."

"You won't catch me arguing." Comes her answer.

Dale comes out of the woods and walks towards them.

I hear Andrea saying "Hey, Dale. When's the last time you oiled those line reels? They are a disgrace."

I look in the direction he came from and see something moving up there. What the...

I touch Shane's arm and when he looks at me I nod towards the moving figure in the woods.

Shane share confused looks.

Dale says "I, uh, I don't want to alarm anyone, but we may have a bit of a problem."

Others look in the same direction. We are all confused.

Shane stands up "Is that...Jim?"

They all move to see what Jim is doing. "What the hell...?" I whisper

"Dixon. Watch the camp" Shane says walking away with all the people behind him.

"Sure! Leave the kid alone to watch the whole camp!" I reply

"Thanks kid! you're awesome. We'll be right back."

I sigh feeling annoyed and walk inside the RV to eat something.

I am starving now. Theres nothing but instant food and things I hate.

I keep looking around until I find some fruit. I take the biggest apple I see and bite it.

At least I found something.

* * *

I go back outside and wait for the others.

Shane brought Jim back. They tied him to a tree.

He really knows how to handle any situation. Are we going to cook Jim and eat him later?

I smile at my sarcastic thought.

I see Shane walking to where Jim is with a bucket. Looks like its full of water. A little while he walks back.

I take the water I got from the RV a while ago and drink a little.

Amy calls Carl and Sophia to clean the fish. They come running followed by Carol.

I wonder if cleaning fish is similar to skinning squirrels.

The sun is starting to set now.

Daryl and the others should be back by now.

People seem to be preparing for dinner

The latin guy says "I built up the rocks all around. See?" He says pointing at the fireplace "So the flames can be a little higher and have them hidden."

I am bored. I'll go check on Jim.

I stand up and walk to the tree.

Jim looks at me. He looks worried.

"Hey. Merle and Daryl's sister, right?" I nod. Welcome to the world where you dont have a name according to everyone so they identify you by being the evil rednecks' sister! "I'm sorry. I haven't got your name. I'm bad at it."

There you go!

"It's Mac." I walk and kneel next to him

"Well. Nice to meet you I guess."

"What were you doing up there?"

He huffs. "I was digging. I had a dream but I can't remember what was it about." I had a dream about a Walker with a panda head mask on, and to make it even better, he was dancing in a bath tub... Should I be worried about it?

Ok. I should stop, this may be serious. I'll just listen to what this man has to say.

There's a little pause. Then he keeps going. "Did your brothers left you a gun somewhere?"

Easy way out? "I ain't killing you if that's what you want."

"No." He says "No. I know something is going to happen."

"Like what?"

"You brothers left you a gun or not?"

"Maybe they did. But what do I need it for?"

"Stick to the gun. I already told Lori to watch Carl carefully. Now you take something to protect yourself and no matter what happens stay near Shane and the others."

"What are you saying? you're kind of talking nonsense here.''

"Just do as I say. Please."

I stare at him. What the hell is he talking about?

"Alright." I mumble. Should I trust him?

I hear heavy steps coming. It is Shane "Hey, Jim. How you feeling, man?"

"I'm better." He says "More myself now."

"I hope you understand the need for this timeout. I've got others I've got to think about." We look at each other. Then we look back at Jim and he says "I just want to make sure there's no there's no hard feelings."

"There's not. I do understand."

"Okay. Why don't you both come join in with the rest of us? Big ol' fish fry." So that's what they were doing.

"I'd like that very much." Jim seems more relaxed than before.

"Okay." Shane unties him "Come on."

We walk back to camp.

Jim looks at me before getting there. I'm thinking of his advice

I'm going to believe what he said and carry a gun with me.

I look away to where my tent is "I'll join you guys in a minute. I uh.. " Jim nods at me and Shane turns to face me. "I forgot something in my tent"

"Go ahead" Shane says.

Jim smiles slightly. almost a relieved look.

I go into the tent and check the Remington 700 the old man used before he died. We've been using it for killing walkers before we came here.

Not much ammo. I don't think we'll need it anymore. I put it back down.

Maybe Merle has something. I look in Merle's bag. Nothing useful. Just bullets for a 9mm handgun and we don't even have one of those.

I take Daryl's bag and start looking. Theres nothing useful either. Just stuff for the crossbow. I keep looking in there until I feel something and pull it out.

Jackpot. Its the revolver he found in Sedalia. I wonder if it's empty. I check and...

...Empty. Shit.

I check the bag and find four bullets. "Its something" I whisper to myself.

I put the bullets in the revolver and then the bag back on its place.

I hide the gun and the knife in my clothes and walk out.

* * *

"Pass the fish, please." I hear someone saying as I approach the group.

"Man o man, that's good." Someone else says

Lori moves her hand next to her telling me to sit besides her. I sit and someone gives me a piece of fish.

I eat quietly. Listening to everything they are talking about

"I've got to ask you, man. It's been driving me crazy." Latin dude asks Dale.

"What?" Dale smiles

"That watch."

"What's wrong with my watch?"

"I see you every day, the same time, winding that thing like a village priest saying mass." I look down to my fish and keep eating

"I've wondered this myself." Someone else remarks

"I'm missing the point." Dale laughs

"Unless I've misread the signs, the world seems to have come to an end. At least hit a speed bump for a good long while. But there's you every day winding that stupid watch." Latin guy says again

"Time it's important to keep track of, isn't it? The days at least. Don't you think, Andrea? Back me up here." Andrea shook her head and kept eating "I like what, um, a father said to his son when he gave him a watch that had been handed down through generations. He said, 'I give you the mausoleum of all hope and desire, which will fit your individual needs no better than it did mine or my father's before me; I give it to you not that you may remember time, but that you may forget it'" I look up at him and finish eating. He goes on "'for a moment now and then and not spend all of your breath trying to conquer it."

"You are so weird." I say frowning. Everyone laughs, Why? He really is weird!

"It's not me. It's Faulkner." Dale explains smiling "William Faulkner. Maybe my bad paraphrasing."

Amy walks away from us and Andrea stops her. "Where are you going?"

"I have to pee." She says making people laugh again. "Jeez, you try to be discreet around here." She enters the RV and closes the door behind her.

I'm still worried about Daryl but I keep it together. I push my thoughts away and focus on the conversation around me.

Suddenly I hear footsteps. I turn my head to check behind us. What...?

I see nothing, just darkness and the RV. That's even more weird than Dale, was it Amy?

I try to not pay too much attention to it by looking back to the others.

I hear it again and frown.

No one else seems to have noticed it. maybe hunting made me lay more attention and something is behind us, or im nervous and im hearing things.

We hear Amy asking "We're out of toilet paper?"

Im about to let out a relieved sigh thinking it was Amy walking behind us but Then a terrifying scream makes me widen my eyes.

We all turn and see how a walker is chewing on her arm. Everyone stands up and runs as maybe a dozen of undead arrives and starts eating people.

I feel my heart skip a beat and take the loaded revolver out.

I shoot three walkers trying to bite me. I just have one bullet left.

I see Shane protecting Lori and Carl with their backs on the RV. "Stay close!"Shane shouts."Stay behind me!"

"Carol!" Lori shouts "stay close! Come on!" Carol and Sophia run to them.

One of the walkers is approaching me fast when I see another one crawling down the RV and grabbing Shane's leg.

"Shane!" I warn. I aim and shoot the undead

Shane nods in my direction seeming shocked. I nod back. Its funny how just one nod may say lots of things.

The walker is now besides me. I let the gun fall to the ground and take the knife out to stab it.

There are a lot of them around me. The others are too busy to help me... Or they're dead on the ground...

I'm so fucked.

A legless walker pulls me to the floor. The knife flies and lands a few feet away.

Shane tries to shoot some of the walkers behind me and protect Lori and the others at the same time. Multitasking ain't gonna work now.

I crawl backwards towards my knife.

One walker falls on me and tries to bite me. I am super scared.

Am I gonna die?

I can't grab the knife because I'm holding the walker back so it wont bite me, but it could scratch me any second.

It's too heavy. I can't hold it much longer.

I'm sorry...

I'm about to let go of the walker but suddenly it has the tip of an arrow coming out of its eye.

I widen my eyes in shock and confusion.

"Baby! Carl!" I hear Rick shouting and more gunshots.

They're back!

I push the walker to the side. Daryl comes out of nowhere and pulls me up.

He pushes me to his back and says "stay behind me!"

I do as he says.

They shoot and shoot and shoot for a while until all the walkers are on the floor and everyone is breathing heavily

"Carl!" Rick runs towards them

"Dad!" Carl runs and hugs him

Rick hugs him back. "Carl" he says over and over.

Daryl turns and grabs me by my shoulders "You bit?" He asks looking worried.

"No." I gasp while pats me all around like a police officer to check me.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Stop that." I push his hand away

he stops.

I look at him worried too. "And you?"

Daryl shakes his head "I'm fine"

"Where's Merle?"

He hesitates and says. "I couldn't find him."

I sniffles anxiously and look around.

"Amy." We hear Andrea sobbing. We see Rick, Lori and Carl hugging each other. Shane standing behind them. Carol and Sophia crying. The others look confused and scared. Andrea is kneeling next to Amy. Looks like she's bleeding to death.

"I don't know what to do, Amy." She cries and tells her sister. A few seconds later Amy is dead. Andrea screams and sobs.

"I remember my dream now. Why I dug the holes." Jim says. everyone looks at him in confusion except for me.

I can't explain how I'm feeling right now...

I cry out of shock and fear and hug Daryl's waist burying myself into him. I can hear his heart beating strong and fast and his shaky breathing. He puts one of his arms around me.

Don't ever leave me again, brother.


	3. You're a bitch or you die

I hear Daryl grunting again. He's helping others to move the bodies and burn them. I've been sitting near Lori and Carol since last night. We haven't even slept. I've been watching Andrea's back the whole time. I still can't believe Daryl couldn't find Merle.

Rick comes back from...Wherever the fuck he was.

He comes near us. "She still won't move?"

"She won't even talk to us." Lori tells him "She's been there all night."

"What do we do? Can't just leave Amy like that." Jacqui adds

"We need to deal with it same as the others." Shane says

"I'll tell her how it is." Rick walks towards her. He tries softly.

She pulls her gun out and points it at Rick. We watch how he backs up slightly

"I know how the safety works." She warns him.

"All right. Okay. I'm sorry." He says putting his hands up and walking backwards slowly. "I'm sorry."

"Y'all can't be serious!" Daryl comes and stands next to us. "Let that girl hamstring us? The dead girl's a time bomb."

I look up to him tilting my head slightly. Time bomb... Yeah, in a sort of way...

"What do you suggest?" Rick asks

"Take the shot." I look up at them. Daryl keeps talking "Clean, in the brain from here! Hell, I can hit a turkey between the eyes from this distance."

"No." I mumble looking at him "She would jump on you. Its not worth the mess"

"For God's sakes, let her be." Lori tells us angrily "its her sister we're talking about"

Our brother is gone too, and we ain't whining like that

Oh well...

We decide we'll listen to Lori and leave her alone. The guys keep burning bodies and putting out people separated from the walkers.

* * *

I am watching Daryl work. He helps Latin Guy with a body and walk to the burning pile.

"What are you guys doing? This is for geeks." Glenn stops them "Our people go over there."

"What's the difference? They're all infected." My brother asks carelessly "They're dead anyway."

True. What's difference does it make?

"Our people go in that row over there. We don't burn them! We bury them. Understand?" Glenn argues with broken voice and points to a different pile of corpses "Our people go over there."

Daryl stares at him for a moment with no expression at all on his face. He tilts his head and and then sighs annoyedly

He helps the hispanic man lift the dead body once more and says loudly "You reap what you sow."

"You know what? Shut up, man." Latin Guy grunts

My brother ignores the comment and tells the group "Y'all left my brother for dead. You had this coming."

I shake my head and try not to think about it. He's angry again.

If he was an animal he'd be an angry fur ball 24/7

I want Merle to come back... I'm not used to being bossed by Daryl unless we hunt, but here...

I think of the day I spent the day handcuffed in high school to keep my mind away from all this.

Oh wonderful Junior year! Asshole teens everywhere!

Suddenly Jacqui screams and startles me. We all look at her

"A walker got him! A walker bit Jim!" She warns backing away from him.

I stand up to get a closer look

Everyone stops doing whatever they were doing and approach Jim like me

"I'm okay" he says not letting anyone come close "I'm okay."

"Show it to us." Rick demands

I observe them curiously

"Easy, Jim." Shane walks forward slowly

"Grab him!" My brother runs to him but is stopped by Shane and Rick

He only made Jim nervous. Jim takes a shovel to protect himself from us

"Jim, put it down." The former police men say almost at the same time "Put it down."

Jim tightens his grip on the shovel until T-dog grabs him from behind making him drop the 'weapon'

The shovel falls to the bloody soil and only then Daryl is able to run toward him and lift his shirt quickly.

There's the bloody bite.

Poor Jim. I look at him with sad eyes.

He was a cool guy. I was starting to like him

Both, Daryl and T-Dog back away quickly

"I'm okay." He says again without moving an inch like a scared kid looking at his mother "I'm okay. I'm okay." He repeats over and over again.

We look at one another trying to think on what to do

* * *

The whole group is discussing what we should do to Jim and Amy.

I look at the guy and feel sorry for him at the same time. I would be one of those corpses if it wasn't for him.

I do understand that Amy is a time bomb, like Daryl said, and so is Jim, but Amy is no longer alive like Jim.

I would hate to be in his place. Just waiting for the moment, knowing you don't have a lot of time left

"I say we put a pickaxe in his head and the dead girl's and be done with it." That has to be my brother.

I would hate to kill Jim, but isn't he suffering already?

"Is that what you'd want if it were you? Or Mac?"

"Yeah, and I'd thank you while you did it."

"Both of us would." I mumble

Everyone looks at me. Rick frowns.

''what? I would hate to see Daryl as a walker. Or suffer because of the bite."

"What if it was Merle?" Lori adds

I give her a death glare "You don't talk about Merle. Besides, Putting an end to it sounds more humane than letting him sit there until he dies. Right, T-Dog?"

The african american man looks at me.

Hy eyes tell him 'You dropped the key, remember, Dumbass?'

Theres silence around until someone else talks

"I hate to say it, I never thought I would but maybe Daryl and Mac are right." Dale says

"Jim's not a monster, Dale, or some rabid dog." Rick insists "He's sick. A sick man."

''He's infected!'' Daryl roars

''We start down that road, where do we draw the line?"

"The line's pretty clear. Zero tolerance for walkers, or them to be!''

"What if we can get him help? I heard the CDC was working on a cure."

I think he wont give up...

Shane says "Heard a lot of things before the world went to hell."

"What if the CDC is still up and running?"

"Man, that is a stretch right there."

"Why? If there's any government left, any structure at all, they'd protect the CDC at all costs, wouldn't they? I think it's our best shot. Shelter, protection."

"Okay, Rick, you want those things, all right? I do too, okay? Now if they exist, they're at the army base."

"Fort Benning?" Lori asks "That's 100 miles in the opposite direction."

"That is right." Shane keeps going "But it's away from the hot zone. Now listen to me. If that place is operational, it'll be heavily armed. We'd be safe there."

Daryl looks at me seeming annoyed and tired of this.

"Nothing related to the military is gonna be safe for us. Benning must be gone now" I whisper looking at Rick and Shane

"How's that?" Shane asks

"We were at the stadium when they were evacuating towards those safe zones. I saw military guys keeping their bites a secret. The helicopters had infected people and no one knew about it."

"That's true. The military were on the front lines of this thing." Rick tries to convince Shane "They got overrun. The CDC is our best choice and Jim's only chance."

"You go looking for aspirin, do what you need to do." Daryl loses his patience. "Someone needs to have some balls to take care of this damn problem" he jumps back towards Jim with a pickaxe in his hands

I widen my eyes

"Hey hey hey!" We all run to him to stop him from killing Jim.

Rick takes his Python again.

Shit, not this again.

I put my hand on the knife I have hidden in my boot. Daryl stops moving.

"We don't kill the living." Rick warns my brother. Daryl turns around and speaks.

"That's funny coming from a man who just put a gun to my head."

"We may disagree on some things, not on this."

Rick puts the gun down, walks around my brother and grabs Jim. I move my hand away from the knife

"Come with me." He tells the infected guy

"Where are you taking me?" Jim asks looking scared

"Somewhere safe."

* * *

A little while after that discussion I see Carol saying something to Daryl in the distance. He gives her the pickaxe and she bashes Ed's head hitting it again. And again. And again. And again. She cries and sobs and looks like she'll never stop.

Suddenly she does.

Daryl looks at her in silence and takes the pickaxe back.

I turn to where Andrea is. I think I just saw Amy moving.

Amy sits and tries to bite Andrea. Some people run to where they are but stop when Andrea pulls the trigger and Amy falls back. Everyone else stops.

Everything is happening so fast.

I sigh.

I stand and walk to the RV.

"Where are you going?" Daryl walks to where I am.

"I need water" we walk to the RV. I look around and take the last water bottle.

"I need you to come with me to the truck. I don't want you alone here again"

"Where are we going?" I ask while we walk out and towards the truck

"We need to take all those bodies to the holes Jim dug yesterday."

I sigh "ok"

* * *

We park the truck and the others take the bodies to bury them. There's no way we're staying in the funeral.

Daryl and I drive back to camp. He's been bitchy and explosive since Merle is gone.

He looks at me for a moment, stops the truck and asks again "Are you sure you're alright? Merle would kill me is something happens to you" I smile sarcastically and look at him.

"congratulations, you'll survive one more day." he looks unamused "I'm ok. I think I just need to get used to this."

Daryl frowns. "To what?"

I hesitate "I.. think I'm scared."

Daryl rolls his eyes and sighs. "oh, come on. Don't be a fucking pussy."

"I'm not! Just.. Anything could happen to one of us any moment""

"It wont!"

"How do you know that? Nothing could kill Merle but Merle, remember?!"

"Merle ain't dead!" He growls angrily. "You think this is easy for me? I did all I could to get him back."

"But he ain't back! We're all we have left and you dont want to see it because your badass wannabe shit makes you think that you're invincible. You ain't. And I ain't either. You have to realize that any little shit could kill us any moment. I'm not a fucking pussy, I just want you to be more careful"

"I am careful." he replies "You need to stop being weak. I want Merle to come back too, but we both know that's not going to happen anytime soon. Now, grow some lady balls, and quit acting like Lori Grimes. That's how we both survive. Its called survival instinct, you're a bitch or you die. Stick that to your head, got it?" he says with his finger pointing at his own forehead. I look at him with a blank expression.

I nod and turn to face the window curling myself into a ball "Yes, sir. I'm sorry."

"Don't call me that. Just try to be yourself again." He says and starts driving again.

* * *

I open my eyes slowly. I'm back in Daryl's truck. I sit and look around. I fell asleep...

I open the door and jump down.

The others are reunited. Even Daryl is there. Must be important.

I run towards them.

Shane is talking. "Those of you with CBs, we're gonna be on channel 40. Let's keep the chatter down, okay? Now you got a problem, don't have a CB, can't get a signal or anything at all, you're gonna hit your horn once. It'll stop the caravan. Any questions?"

Latin Guy says "We're, uh... We're we're not going. We have family in Birmingham. We want to be with our people." I knew it. I heard them before.

"You go on your own, you won't have anyone to watch your back." Shane warns them.

"We'll take the chance. I got to do what's best for my family."

"You sure?" Rick asks

"We talked about it. We're sure."

"All right. Shane."

"Yeah, all right." They look at each other and open a bag of supplies and guns. They give some to Latin Guy. They say goodbye and some of them hug.

"Daryl" he looks at me "where are we going?"

"CDC" he replies and looks back up at the others

"We going too?"

Daryl nods

"Let's move out!" Shane says.

We get in the truck. Merle's bike is on the bed.

I feel a lot better now. Daryl was right, I havent been myself in the last couple of hours... maybe days... Maybe I was just tired.

* * *

We drive in the caravan for a while. I am curious.

"I thought we weren't following the group"

"Why do you say that?" Daryl asks focusing on the road.

"I thought you were mad"

"I am." He says "ain't you? "

"Who wouldn't be? Thanks for being bitchy and bringing me back to reality."

"Thanks for being immature and making me realize that I need to take more care of you."

"bullshit! I want grumpy brother back"

he snorts "yeah, Go fuck yourself"

"There you go. That's my grumpy brother"

Daryl sighs. We are silent for a few minutes, then he says "The gun you used to kill the walkers. It was in my bag"

"Yeah."

"How could you run and get it so fast?"

"I had it before"

"I hate when you touch my stuff without asking."

"I know. But I would have died if I didn't." Theres a pause.

Got a point!

"How did you know the walkers were coming?" He asks

"I didn't. Jim told me to have the gun with me and well, I thought I'd trust him"

The RV stops. Some people come down and start talking.

"Wait here" Daryl opens his door and goes down. He walks towards the others taking his crossbow with him.

I wait in there watching them talk until Daryl lifts his arm and tells me to go with them. Maybe they're going somewhere.

I jump down the truck and rush to where they are.

Rick and Shane come to the scene holding Jim. Others in the group follow them. We walk out of the highway and put him next to a tree. Daryl and I walk behind them. Are we going to leave him?

They talk to him. Carol kneels and gives him a kiss on the cheek. They walk back to the highway. My brother and I wait until everyone's gone, then he turns and nods slightly at Jim. Jim smiles. I think thats his way of saying thank you for warning me about the walkers.

I walk closer and hug him carefully

I whisper "thank you" and then move back to where Daryl is

Everyone walks back to their vehicles. We go back to our truck.

Daryl drives and I see Jim there for the last time with his eyes closed.

I feel bad for him

* * *

"Keep moving." Shane hisses

"Go on. Stay quiet." Rick whispers

We arrived at the CDC. Its almost Dark. We walk together looking out for the walkers nearby.

There are tanks and other military stuff abandoned in the area.

Everyone has their guns out. Shane his shotgun, Rick has the bag of guns around his shoulders and the Python in his hand. Lori and Andrea a small gun each, Daryl has his crossbow on his back and dad's rifle in his hands. I keep my hand on the bowie knife I got from Daryl's bag in case I need it, plus I dont have a gun...

Rick and Shane keep whispering to us.

"Keep moving"

"Stay together."

"Keep it together"

"Almost there."

We get to the building. Its closed. Completely sealed.

"Nothing?" Rick is shocked

"Great! Now what, sheriff?" I ask

"There's nobody here." T-Dog says

"T-Dog!" I talk again "you're a genius! We didn't know that!"

If stares could kill I would be dead now.

"If theres nobody here then why are these shutters down?" Rick seems try to process it while Daryl comes closer to me

"Walkers" He growls making the others look around and become even more anxious

"Baby, come on." Lori tells Rick and tries to pull him away.

Carl and Sophia start whimpering. The walkers are getting closer

"You led us into a graveyard!" Someone tells him

"He made a call." Lori defends Rick

"It was the wrong damn call!" Shane is losing it again

"Just shut up." Rick says "you hear that?"

The walkers keep coming. I take my knife out and position myself behind Daryl.

"Rick, this is a dead end!" They keep discussing. More like fighting

"Come on, let's go." Shane tells Rick "Let's get out of here!"

"Let's go." Lori pleads him when he ignores them Shane takes the lead

"All right, everybody back to the cars!" Shane says. " Move!"

We start walking ready to kill anything that gets near us when Rick stops us.

"The camera it moved."

"You imagined it." Shane says pulling Rick back

"It moved!." Rick fights against him "It moved!"

"Rick, it is dead, man! It's an automated device! Now come on!"

"We gotta move." I say desperately. Its too dangerous out here

"No, just go away!" Rick tells Shane

"Man, just listen to me. Look around this place. It's dead, okay? It's dead!" Shane insists "You need to let it go, Rick."

"Rick, there's nobody here!" Lori pleads him. Daryl and Andrea start getting ready to shoot.

"I know you're in there.! I know you can hear me.!"

Rick keeps fighting and screaming.

Carl and Sophia are crying now. The walkers are closing on us.

"Stay close" my brother tells me loading the rifle

"You're killing us! You're killing us! You're killing us!" Rick shouts at the camera

Shane pulls him one more time "To the cars! Now!"

Rick finally turns around.

"Move!" Shane says pulling Rick in the right direction.

We start running but then, we hear the gates opening.

Everyone stops and turns.

The CDC is open. The light coming from it is blinding.

We stare at it in shock

I can't believe it worked!

Rick was right!


	4. Inside the real time bomb

We enter the CDC as fast as we can

The CDC looks clean and safe as if nothing had ever happened

"Hello? Hello?" the others are calling for someone. I feel uneasy. The place looks abandoned.

"Watch those doors. Watch for walkers."

"Dixon" Shane says. We both look at him. We don't know if he's talking to Daryl or me "you and Daryl watch those doors. Don't let walkers in" Oh. So he'll call me by my last name and Daryl by his name. Ok, I get it

"Hello?" Rick calls again

"Anybody infected?" Comes a voice from the other side of the room

A man is looking at us. Looks like he works here

"One of our group was. He didn't make it." We let Rick talk for us since he seems to know what he's doing

"Why are you here?" The man keeps asking "What do you want?"

"A chance."

"That's asking an awful lot these days."

"I know."

"You all submit to a blood test. That's the price of admission."

"We can do that."

The man walks to where we are and stands next to the doors. We look at him "You got stuff to bring in, you do it now. Once this door closes, it stays closed."

No one talks. No one moves. He keeps going "Vi, seal the main entrance. Kill the power up here."

The iron curtain closes again. Rick looks at the man and presents himself.

"Rick Grimes."

"Dr. Edwin Jenner." Comes the answer.

We go in the elevator and all the way down. We walk out and Follow Dr. Jenner.

"Are we underground?" Carol asks

"Are you claustrophobic?" Jenner asks back

"A little."

"Try not to think about it."

We enter a big room full of computers. Jenner says "Vi, bring up the lights in the big room." Who's Vi?

As the room light up he turns to us "Welcome to zone 5."

"Where is everybody? The other doctors, the staff?" Rick asks

"I'm it. It's just me here."

Lori jumps in the conversation "What about the person you were speaking with? Vi?"

Jenner smiles "Vi, say hello to our guests. Tell them welcome."

 ** _Hello, guests_** Comes a voice from the speakers.

Vi is artificial intelligence. Awesome!

Amy would've loved this. She missed Siri after all.

* * *

We are all around in the room. Jenner took blood samples from all of us.

Andrea is sitting in front of him waiting for the blood to be taken.

We all watch in silence. Some of us seem uneasy.

I don't know how I really feel. I feel safe and happy. I'm glad we found this place and nothing in here can hurt me, my brother, or anyone in the group. But I'm nervous. I think we all are.

"What's the point? If we were infected, we'd all be running a fever." Why is Andrea always complaining? Can we like, exchange her and Amy? Please?

"I've already broken every rule in the book letting you in here." Jenner takes all of our blood samples. Andrea falls back.

"Are you okay?" Jenner asks. Someone helps her up.

"She hasn't eaten a lot these days." Lori says

I shrug looking at Jenner "None of us have."

He looks at us and walks back "Follow me."

* * *

We are having dinner!

I can't remember the last time I had dinner with Merle and Daryl.

Oh wait, I do. It was the night at the bar, when Daryl played pool with Merle's friends. *****

Everyone is drinking. Daryl even took a bottle of whiskey for himself.

I lift my hand and place it near the bottle. "Can I?"

"Go ahead" he says handing me the bottle. I take a sip. Everyone looks at us surprised because Daryl gave me the bottle.

Daryl takes the bottle back and drinks more.

"Can I try yours?" Carl asks Lori and she shakes her head

"Absolutely not"

"I always knew the Dixon weren't a good influence" Glenn says

"Nobody said we were. Sorry to break your heart." I tell him and we all laugh.

"You know, in Italy, children have a little bit of wine with dinner. And in France." Someone else tells Lori

"Well, when Carl is in Italy or France, he can have some then."

Rick looks at her and smiles "What's it gonna hurt? Come on."

Lori thinks of it for a second and

"There you are, young lad." Shane gives Carl a glass with a little of red wine it. He takes a sip and tastes it slowly. We wait for his reaction.

"Ew!" He says frowning. We all laugh.

He looks like he tried a lime.

"That's my boy." Lori pats his back and pours Carl's red wine in hers "That's my boy."

We can't stop laughing. Daryl passes me the bottle again.

I drink a little and then pass it

"If the world hadn't gone to shit I would be arresting you for getting a teen drunk" Shane says

Rick laughs adding "Yeah, We both would"

"If the world hadn't gone to shit we wouldn't even be near you." Daryl chuckles.

"How can you drink that?" Carl looks at me "That tastes nasty." We burst onto laughter again.

"Stick to sour pop then" I say

"Not you, Glenn." Daryl walks to the table and puts more alcohol in front of the... Chinese? Korean? Whatever. Daryl puts more alcohol in front of him.

"What?" He asks confused

"Keep drinking, little man. I want to see how red your face can get." By the look on his face I can officially say that my brother is drunk. Like everyone else here.

Not me though... yet.

"It seems to me we haven't thanked our host properly." Comes Rick's

Right, Jenner has been here the whole " I forgot about him

"Here's to you, doc." Shane says raising his cup.

"Booyah!" Daryl raises his bottle.

"Booyah!" The others laugh.

Then Shane talks again. "So when are you gonna tell us what the hell happened here, doc? All the other doctors that were supposed to be figuring out what happened."

"Shane. Don't need to do this now." Rick looks pissed

"Whoa, wait a second. This is why we're here, right? This was your move, supposed to find all the answers. Instead we found him. Found one man." Now everyone is quiet. Thanks Shane. "Why?"

"Well" Jenner starts "When things got bad, a lot of people just left. Went off to be with their families."

I think of Merle. I wonder if he's alright.

"And when things got worse, when the military cordon got overrun, the rest bolted. Many couldn't face walking out the door. They opted out. There was a rash of suicides." he pauses for a bit and then keeps going "That was a bad time."

"You didn't leave." Lori says "Why?"

"I just kept working. Hoping to do some good."

Glenn gives Shane a death stare. "Dude, you are such a buzzkill, man."

Indeed. He is.

Everyone finished eating. Now we are following Jenner again. He explains that most of the facility is off so we'll have to stay in an area with couches instead of beds

He says the couches are comfortable. Honestly, I think couches are better than sleeping bags. I think we will finally sleep without being alert at the same time. He says there are cots in some storage and tells Carl and Sophia where is the rec room. "Just don't plug in the video games, or anything that draws power." I look at Daryl. Video games?! If Jenner wouldn't have added that no plug them part I would go with Carl and Sophia. I better stay with the adults. Both kids run amused.

After that Jenner turns and says "The same applies to all of you. If you shower, go easy on the hot water." Then he walks

Did I just heard that right?

We look at each other in shock

"Hot water?" Glenn asks. Looks like I'm not the only one who couldn't believe it.

T-Dog replies smiling "That's what the man said."

We all chose where to stay. Daryl and I got a room big enough for the two if us.

I made him take a shower first. He was all sweaty and disgusting.

We all are but I just did because he's been doing a lot of hard work. He deserves hot water.

I bet he'll in there for a while. I take a random book and start reading.

It is about a dog who had an accident involving a bat, then the dog went insane because of the rabies and started killing people. He even bit some guy's balls off.

Hardcore! This book is intense! I like this kind of books. The bathroom door opens and I put the book away.

I look at my brother who even has new clothes on him. "I thought you were going to become a raisin"

He snorts "what were you reading?"

"Some weird book about a killer dog with rabies." I say taking my bag. I move to the bathroom and close the door behind me, The hot water feels nice. Best thing I've felt in weeks.

When I'm done I take the last pair of clothes I have and put them on.

The couch has been split into two making an improvised bed on the floor and another on the top of the couch.

Daryl is sitting on the upper bed with the whiskey bottle besides him. He is counting the bullets we have left of the hunting rifle and ordering his arrows.

"Here." He says handing the revolver I used the other night. I take it and look at him.

"It's empty. I used the last four bullets."

He hands me a little box for 9mm bullets. Half of it it filled with revolver bullets. "Not at all. Those were in Merle's bag. I took them out before we left the camp."

"I thought those were for a 9mm"

"The box was empty and we needed somewhere to store them" he says "you need more than a bowie knife to kill those motherfuckers."

I thank him taking the bullets and put them next to the gun in my backpack.

We find a playing cards set.

We try to play something and drink from the bottle until were drunk. He drank most of it anyway...

I take the dog book and read more

I feel safe. Or maybe I'm too drunk?

Before I know it I'm asleep on the upper improvised bed

* * *

"Morning..." Rick arrives looking

We are all eating in the same spot we did last night but this time everyone is sleepy or hungover.

"Are you hungover?" Carl looks at him with a curious look in his eyes "Mom said you'd be."

Rick sits awkwardly besides his son "Mom is right."

"Mom has that annoying habit." Lori says smiling

"Eggs." T-dog comes and gives puts some eggs in front of him and Glenn "Powdered, but... but I do 'em good. Protein helps the hangover."

I smile. Poor guys.

I'm happy to feel sober again and no pain affecting me. I love my strong brain.

"Where'd all this come from?" Rick asks in pain

"Jenner. He thought we could use it. Some of us, at least." We all look at Glenn. If Rick looks awful, Glenn looks like shit.

"Don't ever ever ever let me drink again."

"This is why asian people shouldn't drink" Daryl whispers to me

I laugh "This is all your fault" I whisper back

"Don't blame me. He's the one who drank that much" I laugh. That's true.

"Feel as bad as I do?" Shane is now here too

"Worse" Glenn mumbles

"The hell happened to you?" T-dog asks Shane. Shane looks at him confused "Your neck?"

He answers "I must have done it in my sleep."

"Never seen you do that before." Rick says

"Me neither." Shane adds "Not like me at all."

Why did he and Lori looked at each other like that? Does it have something to do with it?

Dr. Jenner enters the room greeting us like Rick did a moment ago. "Morning."

Everyone greets him the same

I roll my eyes when Dale starts asking him questions. And Andrea mentions something about the eggs. I forgot how annoying they both are sometimes.

Dr. Jenner lead us to the computer room and says to Vi "Give me playback of TS-19."

 ** _Playback of TS-19_** . Comes the Vi's voice

"Few people ever got a chance to see this. Very few." Jenner tell us while Vi plays an image of something and magnifies it.

"Is that a brain?" Carl asks

"An extraordinary one. Not that it matters in the end." After this his face changes. He looks sad for a moment, then keeps going." Vi, Take us in for E.I.V."

 _ **Enhanced internal view**_

"What are those lights?" We all watch surprised, yet confused, but it's fascinating how it all catches everyone's attention. Including mine.

"It's a person's life. experiences, memories. It's everything." Jenner explains. "Somewhere in all that organic wiring, All those ripples of light, is you. The thing that makes you unique. And human."

"You don't make sense ever?" Daryl asks. The hangover ain't helping him. Poor brother of mine. He walks closer to the rest of the group.

"Those are synapses, electric impulses in the brain that carry all the messages." Jenner tells him. "They determine everything a person says does or thinks from the moment of birth to the moment of death."

"Death? That's what this is, a vigil?" Lori asks

"Yes...Or rather the playback of the vigil."

"This person died? Who?"

"Test subject 19. Someone who was bitten and infected and volunteered to have us record the process." He turns and talks to Vi again "Vi, scan forward to the first event."

 ** _Scanning to first event_**

Something dark enters the brain and starts shutting it down. "It invades the brain like meningitis. The adrenal glands hemorrhage, the brian goes into shutdown, then the major organs." Jenner turns to us "then death." The brain in the image shuts down. Everything is dark in there

He says looking at us. "Everything you ever were or ever will be. Gone."

I hear Sophia asking "Is that what happened to Jim?" Carol says yes.

Andrea starts crying silently. Jenner looks at her confused. Lori tells him about Amy..

He walks near her and says.

"I lost somebody too. I know how devastating it is. Scan to the second event."

 _ **Scanning to second event**_

"The resurrection times vary wildly. We had reports of it happening in as little as three minutes. The longest we heard of was eight hours. In the case of this patient, it was two hours, one minute, Seven seconds." The base of the brain lights up again but it changes from blue to red. The rest is still dark.

Rick gets closer "It restarts the brain?"

"No, just the brain stem. Basically, it gets them up and moving."

"But they're not alive?"

"You tell me." He says pointing at the screen

Rick shakes his head "It's nothing like before. Most of that brain is dark."

"Dark, lifeless, dead. The frontal lobe, the neocortex, The human part. that doesn't come back. The you part. Just a shell driven by mindless instinct."

Something strange happens in the playback and the head is now divided in two

"What was that?" Lori asks

"He shot his patient in the head. Didn't you?" Andrea says

"Vi, power down the main screen and the workstations."

 _ **Powering down main screen and workstations**_

"You have no idea what it is, do you?" I ask. Jenner looks frustrated

"It could be microbial, viral, parasitic, fungal."

Jackie talks finally "Or the wrath of god?"

"There is that."

"How can you not know?" I am now lost in my thoughts. I don't know if the one who asked is Andrea or Lori.

"Everything went down. Communications, directives, all of it. I've been in the dark for almost a month."

Daryl covers his face completely using his hands and rubs his eyes walking back to where I am. He stops and says "Man, I'm gonna get soon faced drunk again." Then uncovers his eyes and looks at me "Wanna join me?"

Drunk Daryl is awesome. I smile "Whatever. Were all fucked anyway." Shane rolls his eyes.

"Dr. Jenner, I know this has been taxing for you And I hate to ask one more question, but..." Hooray! Dale is asking more questions! "...That clock, It's counting down. What happens at zero?"

"The basement generators. They run out of fuel."

"And then?" There is no answer to Rick's question. "Vi, what happens when the power runs out?"

 _ **When the power runs out, facility-wide decontamination will occur.**_

I do not like how that sounds.

* * *

Daryl and I are sitting facing each other. We have a new bottle of whiskey sitting next to us.

I don't even know why we're doing a stare contest. Maybe we're a bit drunk.

Its the stupidest thing I've ever done with my brother. The one who blinks, drinks.

Neither of us is blinking. My eyes are burning

He blinks. I give him the bottle.

He drinks. A little less than half of it.

"Not a single word of this. To anyone." He says

"Never" I agree. We restart the game.

Vi's voice comes from the speakers.

 ** _Emergency lights on._**

"What the.." He says

"What was that?"

Now the AC stops

"Wait here" he says and stands up.

Waiting? Yeah, sure.

I follow him to the door

We can hear others outside complaining the same thing.

"Why is the air off? And the lights in our room?"

"What's going on? Why is everything turned off?" Daryl peeks out and Jenner steals the bottle in his hand.

"Energy use is being prioritized." We follow the man outside the hall. "Zone 5 is shutting itself down."

"Hey, what the hell does that mean?" Daryl asks. No answer. I can see my brother is nervous. He walks faster to where Jenner is. "Hey man, I'm talking to you! What do you mean it's shutting itself down?!"

"How can a building do anything?" Andrea asks.

"You'd be surprised." Jenner says

"Jenner, what's happening?" We find Rick in out way and follow Jenner all the way to the computer

"The system is dropping all the nonessential uses of power. It's designed to keep the computers running to the last possible second. That started as we approached the half-hour mark. Right on schedule."

"What?" Sophia asks.

"It was the French." He turns and looks at us "They were the last ones to hold out as far as I know. While our people were bolting out the doors and committing suicide in the hallways, they stayed in the labs till the end. They thought they were close to a solution.

"What happened?" Someone behind me asks

"The same thing that's happening here. No power grid. Ran out of juice." He walks to one of the computers "The world runs on fossil fuel. I mean, how stupid is that?" He says laughing. What the fuck is wrong with this guy?! Now I'm nervous. I don't really know if I'm scared.

"Lori, grab our things." Rick says looking stressed. "Everybody, get your stuff. We're getting out of here now!"

"Everybody, y'all heard Rick. Get your stuff and let's go!" Shane shouts

The doors start closing. We run to the exits.

When we're near them the doors close on us. Theres no way out now. Vi puts a clock on the screen and says ** _30 minutes to decontamination_**

We are all now shocked. Someone shouts "He just locked us in!"

"We've hit the 30-minute window. I am recording." Jenner adjusts a camera in the computer he's using.

"Recording my ass!" I say running back to where Jenner is. I want to kill the fucker. Jacqui stops me. Daryl runs towards him yelling "You son of a bitch!" Looks like he's thinking the same as me. Rick shouts and Shane runs to stop him.

Daryl keeps fighting. "You let us out of here!"

"Hey, Jenner, open that door now." Rick tries to be reasonable.

"There's no point." Jenner says. "Everything topside is locked down. The emergency exits are sealed."

"Well, open the damn things."

"That's not something I control. The computers do. I told you once that front door closed, it wouldn't open again. You heard me say that" we are all shocked

I push Jaqui's hand away from me and move to where Shane and Daryl are."You specify everything you say except for that! Thank you very much, asshole!"

"You don't understand, do you? It's better this way!"

"What is? What happens in 28 minutes?" Rick asks desperately "What happens in 28 minutes?!"

"COME ON!" Shane shouts.

"You know what this place is?!" Jenner looses his patience and shouts back. He stands up from his chair and looks at all of us "We protected the public from very nasty stuff! Weaponised smallpox! Ebola strains that could wipe out half the country! Stuff you don't want getting out! Ever! In the event of a catastrophic power failure, in a terrorist attack, for example HITs are deployed to prevent any organisms from getting out.!"

"HITs?" " Rick asks. Jenner is quiet again so he commands Vi to define.

 ** _HITs. high-impulse thermobaric fuel-air explosives consists of a two-stage aerosol ignition that produces a blast wave of significantly greater power and duration than any other known explosive except nuclear._** ** _The vacuum-pressure effect ignites the oxygen between 5,000 and 6,000 degrees and is used when the greatest loss of life and damage to structures is desired_**

I look at Daryl completely terrified. Are we going to die here?

I turn to Jenner and mumble "It sets the air on fire?"

He walks near me and explain. "No pain. An end to sorrow, grief regret. Everything."

"You cant do this to us!" I feel so weak and desperate right now. I don't want to die like this.

We're going to work something out. We always do. Rick will think of something.

Shane gets two axes and runs to the door calling my brother. Both are hitting the iron door as hard as they can with the axes. I am watching everything happening around me. I really want to kill this motherfucker right now but others wont let me do that.

"It would've been so much easier." Dr. Fucker says. I was so lost in my anger I dont even know what he's talking about

"Easier for who?"

"All of you. You know what's out there. A short, brutal life and an agonising death." He walks towards Andrea. "your sister. what was her name?"

"Amy." She replies. Why the fuck does she look so calm? Is she just sitting there and accepting this?!

"Amy." Jenner continues "You know what this does. You've seen it."

"Yeah. She's seen it. We've all seen it. But it doesn't mean we want to just give up." I tell him.

"You prefer a life out there where you or your brother will get bit and see each other die?" He asks me. I don't know how to answer that. He turns and tells Rick "Is that really what you want for your wife and son?"

"I don't want this!" He says. Shane and Daryl are still trying to open the doors

"Daryl, just..." They wont be able to do it. I just know it. He turns to look at

He is really desperate. "Just what?!"

"Stop. You wont be able to open it." He grabs the axe tighter. I can see his knuckles turning white. Looks at Jenner as he

"Listen to her. Those doors are designed to withstand a rocket launcher." Talking when Daryl wants to kill you. Bad choice

"Well, your head ain't!" He runs towards Jenner again. This time I know he will kill him if we don't stop him.

Good! Can I help?

"Daryl!" Some run to stop him.

He walks in circles like a pound dog besides me and Shane shouts "Dixon, keep your brother away from Jenner"

"I can't promise you anything." I reply looking at Jenner in the eye. "Its either him or me trying to kill this asshole."

Rick comes near me "keep away from him, alright?" I roll my eyes and nod.

"You do want this." We hear the fucker talk again. He's talking to Rick "Last night you said you knew it was just a matter of time before everybody you loved was dead."

What? Why would he say that?

We are all confused. Rick is the one who brought us here.

Lori and Carl are more surprised than any of us "You really said that? After all your big talk?"

"I had to keep hope alive, didn't I?" So it was all a lie?

"There is no hope." Fucker says "there never was."

"There's always hope." Rick tells him "Maybe it won't be you, maybe not here, But somebody somewhere.

"What part of 'Everything is gone' Do you not understand?" Andrea. I knew that bitch would only fuck things up!

"Listen to your friend. She gets it." Rick shakes his head "This is what takes us down. This is our extinction event."

"This isn't right." Carol cries with Sophia in her arms. "You can't just keep us here."

Jenner kneels and talks softly "One tiny moment. A millisecond. No pain."

"My daughter doesn't deserve to die like this!"

"Wouldn't it be kinder, more compassionate to just hold your loved ones and wait for the clock to run down?"

"Fuck no!" I say loudly, then Shane looses it completely putting his shotgun to the doctor's head.

"Shane no!" Rick shouts

"Stay out of the way, Rick!" He says with the shotgun on Jenner's face "Open that door or I'm gonna blow your head off. Do you hear me?!"

Rick tries to hold him back "Brother, this is not the way you do this. We will never get out of dies, we all die!"

Shane screams. Rick pushes him away of Dr. Fucker

Shane shoots some computers around us.

They both fight for the shotgun.

Rick wins "Are you done now?!"

"Yeah, I guess we all are."

Rick turns and approaches Fucker "I think you're lying."

"What?"

"You're lying About no hope. You'd have bolted with the rest or taken the easy way out. You didn't. You chose the hard way"

"Not because my wife was The subject 19 and she was the one who ran this place and could have done something." Rick and Lori beg him to let us keep trying to survive. He thinks and opens the doors saying "There's your chance. Take it."

Daryl stops and shouts "Come on! Let's go! we've wanted to." Daryl takes the axe and starts hitting the door again while Jenner explains how he promised his wife that he was going as long as he could. He explains his e got four minutes left!"

We run to take the crossbow and our bags. Then we head out.

"Get them doors open!" Rick shouts

"Stay back" Daryl tells me. He runs and tries to break a window with the axe. Its not working.

"Time's almost up." Someone says

"Daryl, look out!" Says T-dog and tries the same with a chair. Nope.

Daryl runs back to where I am.

"Dog, get down!" Shane shoots his shotgun again. I can't believe it didn't work!

"Rick, I have something that might help." Carol runs to Rick and gives him a grenade.

"Your first morning at camp, when I washed your uniform I found this in your pocket."

Rick takes the safety off the grenade and puts it on the window "Get down! Get down!" He shouts running. We all jump to the floor. The window breaks finally and we run to the cars killing every walker in our

We jump in our truck and see Andrea and Dale coming out of the building. Weren't they with us?

"Down!" My brother pushes me down besides him.

The CDC implodes. I can feel the heat coming from it and pieces falling

We stay there for a while until we stop feeling that heat burning us and lift our heads.

Theres nothing left of it.

"Are you ok?" I ask my brother

Daryl nods "you?"

"Cool." We turn and check that the motorcycle is on its place.

Daryl takes a deep breath

"that was intense" I mumble he snorts and starts driving like the others.

"no shit" he replies sarcastically.

It doesn't matter where. We wont give up.

* * *

 ** _* - Mac's Memories: sometimes this appears at the end of a sentence (*). It means the next Chapter will start with one of Mac's pre-apocalyptic memories! In case you didn't notice, this time it appeared when she mentioned something about having dinner with her brothers. I hope this wont confuse y'all._**

 ** _End Of Season 1!_**

 ** _Thank you for reading!_**


	5. Footprints

_**June 12. Sedalia, GA.**_

 _ **Three days before the Outbreak.**_

 **I** hate school.

Not because I have bad grades, I actually don't do nothing and get A's and B's... Its not because no one talks to me either. The main reason is the people around me. I hate people. And the main reason, again? The nicknames. I wish I could just kill them all... The top three this year have been 'hillbilly','fire cracker', and 'pussy possum'. I have some people asking me 'where's the meth?' Or 'Is it true that rednecks love doggie style?' My responses to those questions are always "why don't you ask Merle?" and "I'm pretty sure your mom can tell you about that." Everyone in town knows Merle. They're afraid of him, I don't know why, but they always stay quiet when I mention his name. They stop bothering me. Honestly I guess everyone should be more afraid of Daryl.

Then, we have the Redneck jokes. Every day they come up with new ones, so I can't say the most famous one. I guess it is the fire cracker one and that's why they call me that sometimes. I've been ignoring that one since I was in 4th grade. Also they change it every month.

Joke of the month:

'What do you call a 16 year old redneck from Georgia who can run faster than her two brothers?'.

I don't blame others for not knowing the answer, its an adaptation just for me of another joke. I blame them for knowing it and laughing at me because of it. If someone is curious, the answer is 'A virgin'. I hate when people judge me before getting to know me...

It was a teacher who started. She tried to fight against bullying towards black people, which she ended, but brought a new Redneck Joke Style Era, and who's the only redneck in this damn high school? Me! But even ignoring them, there's always a limit and they crossed the line last week. The ones that bully me the most are the cheerleaders and the football scums. I hate them equally. This year a guy named Chris is always making fun of me with his cheerleading sluts. And guess what. They're all white trash.

Where is the racism against them? Nowhere!

It's lunch time. I'm not hungry, so I'm not sitting like the others, I'm leaning on the wall next to the door waiting for this fucking period to end when I see those assholes and their whores approaching. They seat in the closest table giggling.

"Say, Chris!" A cheerleading slut starts loudly. I roll my eyes.

"What's up?" The guy starts laughing. The cheerleader looks at me, smile and then look back to where the guys are.

"How many rednecks does it take eat a 'possum?"

"How many?"

"Two."

"Two?"

"Yeah! One to eat, and one to watch for cars." They all start laughing and more students join them.

"What can a pizza do that a redneck can't do?" Chris talks.

"What?!" The crowd reply together

"Feed a family of 4!" he shouts.

Everyone starts laughing again. Every single one of them. And then theres this guy, Marcus. He's the only one that stays quiet. He's always dragged into their bullying routine because he's a football player. He's the only nice guy. Not that I like him or anything, I just think hes the only one that deserves my respect. He's the only one that will survive when I kill every single motherfucker here... One of Merle's friends taught me all I have to know about killing someone by just using my hands, plus the shooting experience I got from 'good ol' Merle'. My eyes are on Chris now anyway...

"good!" I say. "You had your fun, now shut it."

"Nah, I have more. You are not ruining my fun." The guy says. I just look at him. My brothers are next.

"How do you piss off a redneck?" Chris says looking at me directly in the eye. "Tell him you lost all his meth."

Everyone knows this goes directly to Merle. And any sexual joke goes against Daryl cause he's the 'pretty face' of the family, so next one will have to do with sex.

The other students look at me. Some of them laugh some of the see how angry and tired of this I am and walk back to their places. One more joke and I swear...

"That's enough. You can make fun of me and my father all you want, but you don't mess with my brothers."

He walks to where I am with a silly smile on his lips and says.

"Tell me, Fire Cracker, how do you call a Redneck Orgy?" There you go! What did I say!? I look at him about to loose it.

"Family reunion" I say dryly "I already know the end of the fucking joke."

"And what are you going to do about it, Hillbilly? Cry with your pussy brothers?"

"What else can I do?" I smile "but first I'm gonna tear off your balls. I'm gonna stick them in your balloon knot and I'm gonna enjoy every single second of it."

* * *

I'm sitting alone in the principal's office. I have a black eye, a bleeding lip and I'm handcuffed to a chair. I mean seriously, who handcuffs a student for self defense?

I'm waiting for Daryl. The principal called my dad but he was too drunk to answer so they called Merle. As always Merle was 'unavailable' so Daryl has to come pick me up and listen to all the bullshit they have to tell him. I've been here since Chris was sent to the hospital. Apparently I did tear off his balls...

I laugh. How the hell did I do that?! I'm not sure if I'm excited of telling Merle or I'm afraid to do it...

"You can't fucking handcuff a teenager to a chair like she's a murderer!" That voice! Daryl! I'm getting out of here!

The door opens. The principal says ''Please understand, for the safety of all the staff and students we had to do this."

"Safety?!" both step in. The principal sits on the desk, literally, and tells Daryl to sit besides me. He shakes his head and looks at me examining the handcuffs. "What about her safety?! Punk-ass deserved it! He tried to punch her first! What kind of pussy does that?!"

She hands Daryl some keys saying "I dont make the rules. I apply them. Her safety was involved too." My brother takes the keys and removes the handcuffs from my wrists. I stand up and stretch myself while they keep talking. "To be honest we couldnt let them fight any longer. I'm afraid we had no choice but to suspend her permanently."

"Permanently!? why?! what the hell?!" He says angrily

"I beg you stop talking like that" The principal tries to calm him a little and says. "Since you're the only member of her family that came here to take responsibility for her, I need to talk to you, privately."

Daryl looks at me. His eyes showing confusion and anger at the same time. I am scared. I know I'm in serious trouble I go out of the office and wait... and wait... and wait until Daryl comes out. We walk out of the school without a word. We walk through the parking lot and stop next to Merle's motorcycle.

"How could you do that?"

"do what?"

"ripping some guy's nuts"

"I wonder that myself"

"Well, the thing is, now we'll have to drag you around. You know that ain't good"

"Look, I'm sorry, alright? They started everything. They were..."

"I don't care. That jackass deserved it. I'm proud of you." Daryl gets on the Motorcycle

"Really?"

"I am. you're lucky to not be in Jail or some psychiatric shit. I was every time. Now get on, Merle's waiting for us."

* * *

"Hey! I heard my Princess kicked ass today!" Merle smiles at me. We're in the same bar, same people. Merle and his friends come here often.

"Got suspended permanently too. I surprised she ain't going to the can." Daryl explains as we sit next to our older brother.

"but she's here! what exactly did you do?"

"ripped off a guy's balls... literally. Spent my day handcuffed and shit!" I reply

"look at her!" Merle and his friends cheer "Ain't she a badass?!"

"This is serious! we can't drag her around with us!" Daryl tells him

"Chill baby brother! let her have vacations at home first" Daryl nods

"alright"

"So, what do you want for dinner?"Merle asks me

"Am I gonna help y'all cook something?"

"Girl, you shouldn't be into the Meth business, you know? I'm not getting you in" Merle laughs

"You'll watch the old man for a while until we figure out what to do with you" Daryl tells me before drinking something blue.

"Bullshit!"

"Excuse me? You are a lady!" Merle smiles "or you are supposed to be."

* * *

 _ **Senoia, GA.**_

 _ **2 Hours after escaping the CDC**_

 _ **W**_ e stopped somewhere.

We had to. To be honest I don't even know where we are exactly. It sucks. At least I know where we're going. Unfortunately we don't have enough fuel. We had to take the gas out of the truck and some of the other vehicles. Looks like we're abandoning them. Daryl asked Rick if he could help him with the motorcycle so now it's back on the road. I like the idea, it is less heavy and takes less gas than the truck.

I'm keeping my valance holding my brother's waist from behind while he's driving . The rest of the group is following us in the other vehicles. I've always loved that motorcycle and the feeling of the wind all around you when you're going fast. I feel free when riding with my brothers.

I used to ride with Merle all around town. Believe it or not I never spent much time with Daryl. He was there when I needed him but he's more quiet and impatient than Merle. Takes more to piss Merle than Daryl. Merle was always my favourite, but Daryl seems to be changing since Merle disappeared. He's been more patient and caring since he came back from Atlanta. Maybe because we're the last two Dixon. I wonder who's my favourite now.

To be honest I am not scared anymore. I feel safe when I'm around Daryl. Even more when we're with the whole group. We're driving around the interstate 85 when we see the abandoned cars. Daryl keeps driving until we see the others stop. He drives back.

"See a way through?" Dale looks surprised. Maybe he's never seen anything like that. Unlike us...

My brother nods. They are following us again. We go slower this are a lot of abandoned cars and corpses in some of them. None of them is a walker. I wonder why they weren't bit. Maybe they died before any walker could get to them.

We're almost halfway through when we hear a loud noise coming from the RV. Everyone stops. We can see smoke coming out from the engine. Daryl gets down the bike. "come on" he tells me and I follow him. Some people are there with us. Rick comes and we all look at him.

"Problem, Dale?" Looks like he's now the leader. I can almost feel Shane's not so happy with it. Perhaps we'll see some fighting later.

Like dogs. There are always fights to determine who the real leader is.

"Just a small matter of being stuck in the middle of nowhere. If you can't find a radiator hose here..." Dale. Why can't he be more positive?

"There's a whole bunch of stuff we can find." Rick says "I can siphon more fuel from these cars for a start."

"Maybe some water." Says Shane

"Or food." Yeah. That would be nice.

"This is a graveyard." Lori Grimes. Remarking the obvious since... Always, maybe

"Just look around, gather what you can." Rick tells us.

Daryl nods slightly towards the vehicles. "Go look for some ammo. See if you can find something useful"

"Alright"

* * *

I follow my brother while others look for food, water and some gas. We are looking in different vehicles. I can't find any ammo. I open the next car. It is a Cadillac. Too fancy for me. Smells pretty bad though. I look inside. There are a lot of expensive things in here. Damn. Like I said too fancy for me. I look to the back seat. I gasp and jump back hitting my head on the ceiling.

"Shit!"

"Everything aright?" Rick asks behind me. I step out of the Cadillac to take a look at the diseased from there. There are two bodies. Looks like a father and his daughter. Both have bullet holes on their heads. Opted out. The old man is still holding the pistol in his right hand. I look back at Rick. He's looking at the bodies too.

"Everything cool" I mumble. He opens the back seat door and gets the gun for me. "I just thought they were walkers." Rick comes back out of the car checking for bullets. "People like this. They had everything. More than I would've ever wished for."

"Yeah. Same here. Not like it matters now." he tells me. He inspects the Beretta with a silencer on. "Lori would never let Carl look for supplies by himself. How old are you, again?"

"Sixteen"

"The way you and Daryl work, its easy to forget you're still just a kid." I sigh.

"Maybe I'm what happens when you were raised by Merle and Daryl Dixon."

"What about your parents?"

"I never met my mom. Our old man was..." How can I explain it? I don't like talking about it at all. "...quite special"

Rick nods and hands me the Beretta "It's almost full. Except for two missing bullets"

I take the gun carefully "Don't you need it?"

"I have this." he motions to his Python.

"Thanks." What a horrible scene.

"Careful."

"I'll try to." We walk in different directions.

* * *

Theres a huge eighteen wheeler. I climb up and open it. There's no one there. Not even dead. I search inside. There is a note.

 _Couldn't take everything with me._

 _Take what you need._

 _I'll be back for the rest later._

 _God Bless Y'all._ '

"Bingo" I say to myself. There are two boxes almost full of revolver bullets and some for the hunting rifle. Also, shotgun shells and bullets for Rick's Python. I even found seven arrows and no bullets for my new Beretta. The rest are for different weapons. We don't need those. Whoever drove this must've survived. A badass like this must be alive somewhere around Senoia.

I climb down the eighteen wheeler to give Daryl the arrows I found. I see Shane playing like a child with a truck full of water. He's laughing with Glenn, who is trying to take parts out of another car for the RV. Carl and Sophia are looking for stuff too. Never leaving their mothers' sight. I see my brother taking gas out of a rusty black car. I approach him and lean on the car next to him. He sucks on the hose until he he feels gasoline in his mouth. He makes a funny face and spits it on the floor next to us. He puts the hose in a tank. "Found something?"

"Yeah, I did actually."

"What you got?" He says leaning in the car next to me. We're waiting for the car's tank to empty.

I take the arrows and rifle bullets out and hand them to him "I found shotgun shells, Python bullets and some more for my revolver. Also Rick got a Beretta and gave it to me."

"Alright." He takes the arrows and puts them in the crossbow with the others. I keep the bullets so we can store them in the bike later. "Give the rest to Rick when we're done with this."

"Ok. I will."

We see Rick running to Lori. Lori and Carol crawl under a car. Carl and Sophia do the same.

I hear my brother say "shit. Get down" He pulls me to the floor.

Walkers. A lot of them.

"There are two corpses nearby." I tell him. "Maybe you think we can use those?" He nods.

We walk fast and quiet to the Cadillac I saw earlier. Daryl opens the back seat door and pulls one of the corpses out. He puts it on me and does the same with the other one. Now we wait. There are walkers approaching us. I can't stand the smell. I see a pair of feet walking towards them. What the fuck? Who would do that? I whisper my brother's name to catch his attention.

"Is that T-Dog?"

We look at him, he seems to be bleeding a lot and sits next to a car.

"What the fuck?" He whispers back.

"He's gonna get himself killed"

"Don't move" Daryl approaches him taking a walker down. He hides T-Dog under the corpse and does the same taking a dead woman out of a car.

We wait for the walkers to pass. Must be a dozen. Maybe two. Its hard to see with a dead body on you that stinks. Everything is quiet too, except for the sound of all the walkers around us dragging their feet lazily. There are no more walkers around me. I push the body away from me and stand up carefully. Daryl is lifting T-Dog. I am a little worried about him. He's soaked in his own blood. We need to patch him up or he'll bleed to death. I hear Sophia screaming. I hurry to where the rest of the group are. Daryl and T-Dog are behind me. When I get there I watch Rick jumping the fence by the highway and run into the woods. What the fuck is going on?

"There's two walkers are after my baby." Carol sobs in Lori's arms while others try to calm her. Sophia must be in trouble.

"Mac!" My brother is calling me.

Oh right, T-Dog is bleeding. I run to my brother. He tells me to get Glenn and Dale to help T-Dog. I do as he says while they approach the RV. When we come back T-Dog is already in the entrance. T-Dog looks pale. Really, really pale. Glenn helps Dale make an improvised bandage using duct tape. I've never seen one of those. Well, T-Dog was lucky. They stopped the bleeding in time.

I look at Carol.

She's standing right where she was when Rick went after Sophia. She hasn't moved at all.

I can see she's not crying anymore but I can also see the despair in her eyes. She seems so worried.

I hope Sophia's alright.

I can't imagine what she's feeling right now. It must be awful.

It makes me wonder if my mother would've reacted like Carol. The thought makes me frown a little. Hopefully no one notices.

My mother didn't even cared about me, otherwise she wouldn't have left me with my dad.

Daryl says he and Merle don't even know who she was. Will kept it as a secret and now that he died it will always be a mystery.

Merle once told me that Will burned the only letter containing any kind of information about her. The one she left by my side. He said the three of them were getting nuts. They didn't know what to do with me. At least my old man took care of me sometimes. He wasn't that bad. Not like any other father. Not like Rick. He was more like Ed but Dixon style. He was just... Alcoholic. I like to think he loved us in his own way.. We did too, in our own ways. Now that I think of it. I really should thank my mom for leaving me with them. I even feel lucky for it. If she hadn't abandoned me I wouldn't have met my brothers. I would probably be dead by now like everyone else in this shitty world. I look in Daryl's direction with a thankful smile.

Thanks mom. Even though I probably saw you just once and I cant even remember. Thanks for not caring at all.

Voices snap me out of my thoughts. Rick is back but I can't see Sophia. That's not a good sign. He is calming Carol and talking to Shane who nods and leaves Carol and Rick Rick needs people to look for Sophia. He tells Daryl to go with him. My brother accepts. Shane comes back running to the scene. They tell Glenn to go with them and they're ready to go. I'm about to go see if Dale needs me for something when I hear Shane's voice calling me like he always does.

"Dixon!" The others look at him confused.

"Yeah?"

"You ready? We're leaving!" Why? Its not like I can find Sophia any better than Daryl. And I know he wont be happy with it.

"Hey!" Daryl says madly "she ain't coming"

"You don't decide that."

"She's my sister! I decide if she comes or not! I ain't loosing her like Merle!"

"Daryl." Rick joins the conversation "I know she's your family and you want to protect her..." They look at each other in the eye. Daryl seems to be thinking about it."...you can track Sophia by yourself. Theres no doubt. But think about it. None of us know anything about tracking or survival more than you guys. If you let her come we might find her faster"

I walk near my brother. I want to go. "It could work. "

Daryl looks pissed. I know he hates arguing. He's more the doer than the talker type. The faster it ends the better for stares at Shane and Rick. I can almost hear him thinking 'thank you assholes!' He then turns at me and grunts.

"Fine. Just don't do anything stupid. Stay close."

I nod. "ok"

* * *

We walk for a while. Rick says its here. We look for Sophia.

"Sure this is the spot?" Shane asks him. Daryl tells me to look for anything that can tell us where she could've gone. I do as he says

"I left her right here." Rick answers and tells us what happened "I drew the walkers way off in that direction up the creek She was gone by the time I got back here. I figured she just took off and ran back to the group. I told her go that way and keep the sun on her left shoulder."

"Assuming she knows her left from her right." As they talk we walk around looking for prints.

"Shane, she understood me fine."

"Kid's tired and scared, man. She had her a close call with two walkers. Got to wonder how much of what you said stuck."

Theres something here. Footprints. Small ones. At least smaller than mine.

"Daryl." My brother comes and looks at them like I did.

Rick and Shane stop arguing. They look up at us. "Found anything?"

"There's clear prints right here. She did like you said, headed back to the highway." My brother explains and looks at me "nice job kiddo" I nod.

"Let's spread out, make our way back." Rick says. We start moving, following the trail.

* * *

Daryl and I are upfront. Everything looks fine until the footprints change direction and head to out rights. We stop.

Daryl kneels to check them better. "She was doing just fine till right here. All she had to do was keep going."

"What?" Rick asks

"She veered off that way." I say pointing right.

"Why would she do that?"

"Maybe she saw something that spooked her, made her run off." Shane says.

"I don't know" I tell them looking down at the footprints "I don't see any other footprints."

"That's because there are no other footprints" Daryl stands up "Just hers."

"So what do we do? All of us press on?" Glenn asks

"No, better if you three get back up to the highway." Rick commands "People are gonna start panicking. Let them know we're on her trail doing everything we can. Shane, keep everybody calm."

"I'll keep 'em busy scavenging cars. Think up a few other chores. I'll keep 'em occupied."

"Stay outta trouble." Daryl tells me.

"ok"

"Come on." Shane walks and we follow.

"Why aren't we all out there looking? Why are we moving cars?"Carol asks the moment we finish pushing one more car.

"We have to clear enough room so I can get the RV." Shane answers

"We're not going anywhere till my daughter gets back."

"Hey, that goes without saying. Rick and Daryl, they're on it, okay? Just a matter of time."

"Can't be soon enough for me."

"I'm still freaked out from that herd that passed us by, or whatever you'd call it." Lori changes the topic

Andrea adds "Yeah, what was that? All of them just marching along like that."

"I don't know. A herd maybe." I say. Hello sarcasm.

"No shit" she answers. Glenn and I laugh.

"Come on, people. We still got a lot to do. Let's stay on it." Shane says. We push the last car.

* * *

I am sitting on Merle's motorcycle. I have nothing to do now.

I take the Beretta Rick gave me. It needs to be cleaned. I'll have to ask Daryl to teach me how to do that.

"Mac"

I look up. Carl is standing next to me with a bag.

"Whats that?" I ask. He looks around.

"Its an arsenal. I found it in one of the cars. Full of knives. Wanna see it?"

"Nah. I already have a knife"

"Woah! Is that a gun" he says pointing at the gun. Oh shit.

"It's Daryl's" I lie

"Can I have a gun?"

I look at him confused. "Do you even know how to shoot?"

"No, but you can teach me"

I snort "Sure! So Rick and Lori can kill me later for giving you one. How fun."

"Daryl taught you, right? You can teach me. You don't have to give me a gun if you don't want to. Just teach me."

"No. Merle did, and I ain't teaching you. Why don't you ask Shane?"

"He's been brushing me. He did that not long ago." He says

"Then ask your dad"

He opens his mouth to say something when we hear a car's radio on.

It comes from the car Lori and Shane are.

 ** _The emergency alert system has been activated._**

 _ **The Office of Civil Defense has issued the following message: Normal broadcasting will cease immediately.**_

 _ **Avoid anyone infected at all costs. Remain calm.**_

 _ **Help is on the way.**_

"Asshole." Shane says and turns the radio off.

* * *

The sun is setting now. Carol is back where I saw her last. Waiting for Rick and Daryl to come back. I walk next to her and ask if shes ok.

"It's late. Gonna be dark soon." That's all she says

"They'll find her." I assure her. I don't know what to think but she needs hope now. They should be back soon.

Andrea and Dale start arguing. Again.

Shane talks to them. I don't even care what they're saying. I just stay there with Carol.

Rick and Daryl come out of the woods. They look tired and dirty.

"They're back!" Lori says running to us. The others behind her.

"You didn't find her?" Carol cries again

"Her trail went cold. We'll pick it up again at first light." Rick explains

"You can't leave my daughter out there on her own to spend the night alone in the woods."

"Out in the dark's no good."Daryl tells her

"You could've taken Mac with you."

"We'd just be tripping over ourselves. More people could get lost."

"But she's 12." She sobs "She can't be out there on her own."

"I know this is hard." Rick says "But I'm asking you not to panic."

"We tracked her for a while." My brother tries to clam her down

"We have to make this an organized effort. Daryl knows the woods better than anybody. I've asked him to oversee this."

I see blood on Daryl's jeans. It is darker than usual. Not human.

"Are you ok?" He looks down to where the blood is.

"Yeah. We took down a walker."

"Walker? Oh my God." Carol panics

"There was no sign it was ever anywhere near Sophia." Rick tries to calm her again

"How can you know that?"

My brother hesitates and then says "We cut the son of a bitch open, made sure."

Eww...

"How could you just leave her out there to begin with?"

"Those two walkers were on us. I had to draw them off. It was her best chance."

"How was she supposed to find her way back on her own? She's just a child."

"We'll try again tomorrow." Rick says

"I'll bring my sister with us this time in case I missed something." Daryl says trying to cheer her up.

"Its ok." I tell her "We'll find her"

Carol sobs and walks away.

"Everybody take a weapon." Is that the bag Carl found ?

Andrea seems unhappy with the idea. "What about the guns?" Shane looks at her pissed.

"Daryl, Rick and I are carrying those." Rick looks at me. He knows I have guns too. He gave me one. By the look he's giving me I can tell he prefers to keep it as a secret. I better keep quiet. "We can't have people popping off rounds every time a tree rustles. Say somebody fires at the wrong moment, a herd happens to be passing by. Then it's game over for all of us. So you need to get over it."

"The idea is to take the creek up about five miles, turn around and come back down the other side. Chances are she'll be by the creek." Daryl says.

"Stay quiet and stay sharp." Rick talks finally "Keep space between you but always stay within sight of each other." He walks to Dale and T-Dog "Keep on those repairs. We've got to get this RV ready to move."

We are in the woods. Each person has a knife from the bag Carl found.

This is not a good idea. All people here. Someone's going to get lost and we'll have to track more than one person now. This wasn't Daryl's plan.

The original idea was to come just the three of us to move faster while the others collected supplies. I understand Rick wants to cover as much ground as possible, but this people will just slow us down. If Daryl thinks I don't know anything about tracking then I don't want to know what he thinks about them."

Sophia must be far by now if she kept moving as much as we did. Whatever happens we are going to find her. We have to.

"Mac, I'm talking to you."

"What?" My brother is looking down at me. Others are following us like always. "Sorry. What was it?"

"Are you alright?"

"Awesome. I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"Do you think we'll find her?"

"You doubt?"

"No, I just want to know what you think."

"I think you should concentrate. I brought you to help me track, not to talk"

"Ok." He's right thinking random stuff won't help us find Sophia. I need to concentrate and do as he says.

We keep walking.

Theres now a new pair of footprints. This are bigger and look nothing like a walker's steps. Daryl tells me to follow that one. If I need anything I'll whistle.

I do as he says. The trail looks really dry and old. Definitely not Sophia's.

I walk a few seconds until I see an old dirty tent. Sophia could me in there. Maybe this other person took her and helped her. Maybe not. Could be dangerous. I better not look alone in case someone is still in there. I better whistle.

* * *

"She could be in there." I tell my brother once he and Rick come next to me. We are looking a the tent suspiciously. Daryl walks carefully to check the tent.

"Could be a whole bunch of things in there. Stay here."

I watch him as he takes his knife and stands next to the entrance. He looks at Rick and nods.

Rick calls Carol softly. "If she's in there, yours is the first voice she should hear." She comes closer.

"Sophia, sweetie, are you in there?" She calls. Nothing happens

"Sophia, it's mommy." If something jumps out and attacks Daryl I'll be pissed. Really pissed. I'm going to trust him and Rick. They're supposed to know what they're doing, right?

"Sophia. We're all here, baby. It's mommy." Nothing. Daryl opens the tent and goes inside. We wait.

"Daryl?" I call after a few seconds. I'm nervous i can't help it. When theres no answer I look at Rick. He notices and calls him too

"Daryl?"

"It ain't her." He comes out of the tent. I can tell he did something, otherwise he would've just looked.

"What's in there?" Carol asks

"Some guy. Did what Jenner said. Opted out." Everyone is quiet. Awkward.

The awkward silence breaks to the sound of a church bell. Where?

Could it be Sophia? Smart kid.

"What direction?"

"I think that way. I'm pretty sure."

"Damn, it's hard to tell out here." Rick adds "Someone's ringing those bells, maybe calling others."

"Or signaling they found her."

"She could be ringing them herself." Shane says. We all start running trying to find the source.

We run and run until we find it. Theres a church with a cemetery all around.

We run through it. The church has no tower. No bells. Why?

Why break in. A few walkers turn to us. What the hell?!

Rick, Glenn, Shane and Daryl kill them and walk out.

"That can't be it. Got no steeple, no bells." Rick seems confused

"Yo, JC, you taking requests?" Daryl says looking at the Jesus Christ hanging in the middle of the wall.

"I'm telling you, it's the wrong church. It's got no steeple, Rick." Shane is arguing with Rick again.

The bells sound again. We all turn. Daryl and I run outside. The rest follow us again.

It has to be this church. We are all confused

"It's on a timer." Glenn says walking past us and turning it off. I sigh.

"I'm gonna go back in for a bit." Carol says. We follow her. I font know why others did but I ain't staying out here with this damn burning sun.

We sit somewhere in the church. Daryl comes and sits next to me on the floor. We look around.

Carol is praying. She's crying again. She seems so broken. I feel bad for her.

Daryl and I've never been the religious type. I don't see how praying will help her. But if it makes her feel better, why not?

"What was in that old tent we found?" I ask Daryl. I whisper to make sure no one listens to us.

"I told you. Just a dead guy."

"But there was something else. Otherwise you would've just looked and walked out but you did something there. What was it?" He looks at me and chuckles

"You know me so damn well, right?" I look back at him "The guy had a gun. May be useful" I nod and look back to where Carol is.

We spend some time there until Carol finishes then Rick stands up and walks out.

It's time to go. Daryl stands up and helps me up.

"Come on." I follow him outside.

Rick and Shane are talking. Rick wants us to keep going. Shane disagrees.

He says "These people are spent. There's only so many hours of daylight left. We still got a long way back."

"I can't stop yet. We still got a lot of ground to cover, whole other side of the Creek Bed."

"So we search that on the way back." They walk away from us to talk more privately.

When they're done they walk back to us.

Rick says "Y'all gonna follow the Creek Bed back, okay?"

"Daryl, you're in charge. Me and Rick, we're just gonna hang back, search this area another hour or so just to be thorough."

"You're splitting us up." My brother looks confused "You sure?"

"Yeah, we'll catch up to you."

"I want to stay too. I'm her friend." Carl tells Rick and after a while he and Lori accept.

"Lets go, people. Get moving" Daryl says. We are going to start walking when Rick stop us.

"Daryl. Hold on" every time they tell him to wait something happens. "We need Mac to go with us."

"What? why?" I ask

"We don't want anyone else to get lost. Including us. You can show us the way"

"I don't know the woods like he does."

"Alright." I look at Daryl surprised. Did he just.. "But you're taking two kids with you, Rick. You sure about it?"

"Don't worry about it" he says.

Daryl warns me "Don't fuck up."

"I wont. " if i do he'll be mad. I don't want a mad Daryl chasing me. I know what happens when he's mad.

The group walks away.

Shane, Carl and I sit on the entrance steps. We are waiting for Rick to come out of the church. He said he needed a minute. After that, we will keep looking. We still need to find Sophia, but now, we just wait here. Until rick comes out.

We've been walking for several minutes now. We are deep in the forest again.

I found footprints so Rick told me to track whoever walked through here since I'm sure it wasn't a walker. I doubt it was Sophia though.

"Wait." I whisper "look."

There is a beautiful deer walking. We all stare at it. It hasn't seen us yet.

Shane takes his shotgun to kill it when it starts eating but Rick stops him.

Carl looks amazed by it. We all are. It's the most beautiful deer I've ever seen. I can't hunt it. I simply can't.

Carl is getting closer to it. We better not move if he wants to touch it.

He walks closer and closer. More than I've ever been to one of those... Alive...

It's amazing how one little moment can make you feel hopeful again and almost forget all your problems. I feel happy, and judging by the others' faces they feel that way too.

Something ruins the moment for me. This is not right. Plants moved in the distance. I pay more attention to it now and focus on finding what moved.

There is a man there. Oh shit. He's got a hunting rifle with him and aims at the deer.

"Carl! Stop!" I shout and move forward the same moment the gunshot echoes in the woods. The deer falls on the ground dead. Carl falls back too. I gasp shocked. I can't move. Is he dead? He isn't dead, is he? Please don't be dead!

"Carl..." I don't know what to do. Rick and Shane run towards him.

"No." Shane says

"No, no, no, no!" Rick shouts over and over again. "Carl!" He shouts again

.


	6. Another half mile

We are running. We've been doing that for a while now. I can even feel my heartbeat in my throat. Its getting hard to breathe, but we can't stop now.

We need to get there. We need to help Carl.

"Hey, you move, dickhead!" I hear Shane by my right side as we help the fatso who shot Rick's kid move. I can hear his heavy breathing. "Come on, get us there!"

"How far?" Rick comes running. He's soaked on blood and really desperate. "How far?"

"Another half mile, that way!" He instructs. Rick looks tired but he keeps running as fast as he can.

"Dixon!" I slow down and listen to Shane. "Go find it. You can get there faster since you don't have to carry someone around. Tell them Carl was shot by one of their men!"

"Will do!"

"Hershel, talk to Hershel" fat gut says when I start running towards the farm. "He'll help the boy."

I run past Rick.

I see it. There is someone standing down a tree. I run towards that person. She looks at me suspiciously.

"Hershel here?" I ask shaken. A young woman is looking down at me. She looks confused yet nervous.

She asks "who are you?"

"One of your men shot a member of our group. A kid."

"Our?!"

"There!" I say pointing at Rick who's arriving at the property "you gotta help us! We need Hershel!"

The lady stares at Rick for a second. Her face changes from confusion to surprise.

She turns around and calls "Dad!"

An old man comes running out of the house. Some other people behind him. I assume they are his family. He sees Rick and tells the other to move and help.

"Was he bit?" He asks.

"Sh- shot. H-he got shot" Rick is unable to talk. Poor man.

"How?" Rick is in shock. He wont answer. I feel bad for him.

I answer the question "One of your men did it"

"Otis?" An old lady says. Maybe Hershel's wife.

"He said find Hershel. Is that you?"

"Help me" Rick says "Help my boy."

The old man hesitates for a second. Then he talks again. "Get him inside!" We all follow him. He tells Patricia, the old lady, to get her medical kits. Maggie, the woman who was standing next to the tree, Painkillers and coagulates.

He also asks for Clean towels, sheets, alcohol, etc.

They get into a room. I prefer to stay out of it and give them some space. This is none of my business. Maggie comes and leads me to the living room and as soon as she came, she's back in the room.

I can hear them rushing in and out with stuff to help Carl. To save him.

I sit in one of the couches. I lose myself in my thoughts.

This reminds me of...

I rub the scar absently.

Sometimes I fear it could happen again. They said it could. I hope not. Not in this new world.

"Move!" I hear Shane's voice outside. Looks like he just arrived.

I see Rick coming out of the room and walking outside with Shane.

I look at them through the window.

The fat guy asks something. The only response is an absent nod.

Rick tries to wipe the sweat off his forehead but ends up with blood all over his face.

Shane wipes it and they come back in and into the room.

I hear Hershel asking for his blood type.

A+, like Rick.

The fat guy and Maggie come out of the room for a bit and sit in front of me.

"Hey" she says. I look up at her. "is that your little brother?"

"No." I say "Rick is just a friend."

"Name's Maggie"

"Mac."

"What happened out there?" Maggie asked.

"I was tracking a buck." The fat guy says before I can even reply. "Bullet went through it. Clean through."

"The deer slowed the bullet down, that saved his life, but it broke up into pieces." She says. "My dad will try to get them out"

"I never saw him." Fat guy says again

"until he was on the ground?" I say with an annoyed look.

I look back to the room and see Rick crying. "My wife doesn't know" he sobs "My wife doesn't know." Poor Rick... How is he going to tell Lori?

* * *

Rick is still depressed. He blames himself over and over again. It wasn't his fault, why would he blame himself? He had nothing to do with it. "Why'd I let him come with us? I should've sent him with Lori."

Shane and I are besides him. I'm not good at this so I let Shane comfort him. "You know, you start that, you never get that monkey off your back."

"Carl got shot because of me. It should be me in there."

"You've been there, partner, right?" He was? "And you pulled through. So will he."

"Is that why I got outta that hospital?" So Rick was in the hospital before all this happened. That explains some things. He keeps going "Found my family for it to end here, like this? This kind of sick joke?"

"Stop it." I say. Thats enough of Rick blaming himself. I don't want to hear more of it. "Just stop. Stop blaming yourself." I just need him to stop talking shit.

Maggie's head sticks out of the room "Rick, He needs blood."

Rick enters the room. Shane and I stay in the doorway. Carl is crying loudly as Hershel removes the piece of the bullet from his stomach.

"Both of you" Hershel says calling us both "hold him down."

Both of us jump to his sides and hold Carl so he stops moving. He cries and screams in pain.

"Stop" Rick shouts desperate "You're killing him!"

"He needs blood."

Suddenly Carl stops moving. His crying stops.

I look at Rick horrified. The three of us look at Hershel in shock.

Is he dead?

"He just passed out." Hershel says taking the piece out. He has five more to go.

* * *

Damn...

"Hey kid." Maggie, Otis and I are sitting in a living room next to Carl's room. We were completely quiet in an awkward silence until Maggie decided to talk. I dont know if I should answer. I don't think its a good idea, or.. Maybe it is, they are helping Carl. I look up to see her. "You said Rick is just a friend of yours. What about the other guy?"

"Shane? He's Rick's best friend. Keeps the group safe too. He's one of those hard guys. Who never dies."

"He something yours? Like family?"

I snort and say "yeah he wishes! I met him a few weeks ago. He keeps me busy. Instead of just sitting there waiting for someone to bring me food and protect me, he puts me to work."

"What about your family?" I'll play cool. Ain't telling her much though.

"Lost my brother a few days back. Been following Rick's group since." I won't mention Daryl. That's enough information for now. Lets see if we can really trust them.

"What about the rest of your family? Your parents?" Nope. I refuse to talk about it. My past has some private shit. My father beating the hell out of us is no ones business but mine and my brothers'. Enough talk. Otis kept quiet through the whole conversation. Lucky for me she seems to understand that I won't talk more about it.

Hershel comes out of the room followed by Rick and Shane. We stand and turn to face them. How's Carl?

They say Carl needs surgery and Hershel needs supplies to perform it. He says performing it without said supplies could kill him by either touching an artery if he moves like he did or sedating him, which would not let him breathe on his own.

 _Shit. I know how that feels. Not cool.*_

The nearest hospital is too far for them to get the supplies on time, but...

"The high school" Otis says

Hershel replies "That's what I was thinking. They set up a FEMA shelter there. They would have everything we need."

"Place was overrun last time I saw it. You couldn't get near it"

"You could enter from the cafeteria windows. They are always open." I tell them

"You've been there?"

"Once." I say "not to study anyway"

Shane gets in the conversation "Leave the rest to me. Draw me a map."

"You won't need a map" Otis tells him "I'll take you.

Maggie walks closer to Rick. "Where is she? Your wife?"

I say "I can take her there." Shane shakes his head

"No. We are not loosing another kid. You stay here with Rick, help him with whatever is necessary."

I sigh "fine." I don't like the idea. Too boring for me, but who cares? Rick is the leader and right now he needs someone to stay with him...

They tell Maggie where to find the others. She takes a horse and runs as fast as possible.

We put the stuff on the bed of the truck. They are ready to go to the high school. If it is the high school I'm thinking of, then i know it. Like I said, I went there once. Got stuff from the chemistry lab for Merle's cooking. Me and some guy named Jesse. Fucking junkie. I wonder what happened to him. He was one of the greatest dealers in the country. But they don't need to know that, do they?

"Just get what you need and get out of there." Rick tells them

Rick gives his python to Otis. He thanks saying "that is a fine weapon. I'll bring it back in good shape."

"Keep an eye on Rick, ok?" Shane tells me. I nod

"I will." This is one of the strangest days in my life. That said they go on the truck and to the high school.

"Let's check on your boy"

* * *

"Why are you so relaxed?" Rick and I are looking at the fields. We are standing on the porch waiting for Maggie to come with Lori.

"What do you mean?"

"We are dying, one by one. Its just a matter of time before those things..." I look at Rick I can't believe what he's saying "we should've stayed in the CDC"

"No." I look back to the lands. "We did the right thing. You're just depressed and worried about Carl. He'll recover, you'll see."

"You and Daryl lost Merle and act like nothing happened. How?" Shit. Don't mention Merle!

"You said it. Acting. Sometimes I still can't believe he's gone." I think of Daryl "Guess its just survival instinct" Rick nods.

"Thanks for staying."

"No need to thank. It's the least I could do."

"Am I interrupting something?" Hershel appears behind us. He walks and stands next to Rick.

"How untouched. You're lucky." Rick tells him

"We weren't completely unscathed. We lost friends, neighbours." He Pauses a bit and says "The epidemic took my wife, my stepson. My daughters were spared. I'm grateful to God for that. All we have left is each other. Just hoping we can ride it out in peace till there's a cure."

"There is no cure." I tell him.

"I don't believe it. How come a young lady can be so hopeless?"

"We were in the CDC." Rick explains. "Its all gone now. She's not hopeless, just realistic."

"When aids came along, everyone panicked. One boy in town came down with it, and some parents pulled their children from school, so they didn't have to sit in the same room." He wont give up, will he?

"This is a whole other thing."

"That's what we always say! Mankind's been fighting plagues from the start.

We get our behinds kicked for a while, then, we bounce back.

It's nature correcting herself, restoring some balance."

"Its not" I say. "We've seen it. Its not."

"I wish I could believe that. I'm sorry." Rick says. We watch the sunset for a while until we see the horse. Maggie found the group. I wonder how my brother is doing. Lori and Rick run to each other into a hug and cry for a bit. We wait for them in silence and then enter the house.

I lean in the doorway watching how Lori cries when she sees Carl. She leans on his bed and kisses his forehead. "My baby boy." She cries "Mama's here. You're gonna be okay."

She looks so loving and caring it makes me feel depressed. What would my mother have done when I was in the hospital? She would have cared, or walked away? Carl and Sophia are such lucky kids.

Rick sits and they take more blood from him. Lori sits by his side and pats his shoulder. They are perfect. Not all couples would go through all this and stay together.

My thought fades when I remember Lori and Shane together. Does Rick know about that?

Lori looks at me and smiles. Rick does the same, except he does not smile at all. He just looks at me with a grateful look. I don't know what he's thanking me for. I turn red and smile back, then I turn away.

Rick is a great father too. I feel a little jealous for it, but at the same time I feel sorry. This people does not know any kind of survival stuff.

They'll just die one by one.

This kind of people are weak. They are trying to keep living as if nothing happened.

Surviving is not their thing, they have to learn how to do it.

Rick is looking pale now.

* * *

"How many transfusions?" Lori asks as Hershel removes the needle from his arm.

"Only two."

"You know he wanted to do the same for you when you were in the hospital. I had to talk him out of it." She looks at hershel who is putting everything back in place.

As they walk out of the room Lori tells me to help Rick keep his valance. He is weak now from the blood loss. I do as she says and help Rick to the living room.

She keeps talking to Hershel. "So, when Shane gets back with this other man..."

Hershel corrects her. "Otis."

"The idiot who shot my son." I cant help but smile at her comment. I would call him an idiot too.

"Ma'am, it was an accident."

"I'll take that under advisement later. For now, he's the idiot who shot our son. As soon as they get back you can perform this surgery?"

"I'll do my best."

"you've done this procedure before?"

"Well, yes, in a sense."

"In a sense?" She does not look comfortable with the answer. Rick makes her understand.

"Honey, we don't have the luxury of shopping for a surgeon."

"I understand that. But, I mean, you're a doctor, right?"

"Yes, ma'am." Hershel says "A vet." Oh.. Oops..

"A veteran" Lori. Do I have to explain it to you? "A combat medic?"

"A veterinarian." Lori's face is priceless. Surprise!

Well.. Like Rick said, we can't go shopping for a surgeon. It has to be him.

"You've done this surgery before on what? Cows pigs?"

Rick's weight starts to fall on me completely. Uh-oh... "Mac" he whispers "I..I have... I have to sit." Poor guy. He's just too weak. He looses his valance and almost falls backwards. I catch him as fast as I can and help him sit. Lori and Hershel look at us.

Hershel hands me some orange juice and I give it to Rick. He says thanks and coughs a little.

He drinks slowly. Lori and Hershel continue the conversation.

* * *

Hershel checks on Carl again "We can't wait much longer."

"Take some more" Rick says showing his pale arm "Whatever he needs. Then I'm gonna go get Shane." I don't think that's a good idea. He could die because of it. "They should be long back by now. Something's gone wrong."

Lori tries to put some sense into him "Are you insane? You're not going after them."

I say "You're in no condition to do anything about it."

"Shes right" hershel tells him. "You've given too much blood. You're barely on your feet. You wouldn't make it across the yard."

Rick insists "Something happened, I have to go. I can't just sit here."

"That's exactly what you do!" Lori looks like shes loosing her patience "If you need to pray or cry or tell God he's cruel, you go right ahead, but you're not leaving, Rick."

Rick sighs and sits back next to Carl's bed. Lori looks at me and walks out with Hershel.

"I'll be back" she tells me. "Keep an eye on him... Both"

I nod

"Yes ma'am."


	7. Surgery

**2 Days After the outbreak...**

There was a boring day in the ER. Only one patient has appeared early in the morning but wasn't really serious. The patient has gone home hours ago.

Jennifer Hills, doctor at Lobby of Memorial Hospital was the first to hear it.

A truck parking fast.

Next thing was a man in his early thirties entering the room with a child on his arms.

All the nurses and doctors joined the lobby to see what was going on.

The child seemed to be at least 15. Maybe 16, and she seemed beaten. Pretty badly.

"What the fuck are y'all looking at?!" The man said. "I need help assholes!"

Dr. Hills was the first to react. She called her team and got to work.

"What happened?" She asked the man when the team took the child away and started working on her.

"Got beaten by an asshole." He said.

"Are you her father?"

"No. Her brother."

"Ok. " Dr. Hills said filling a form. "You are responsible for her, right?"

"I... I guess. Yes"

"Sign here please. Your name?"

"Daryl Dixon" he replied signing the paper and handing it back to her.

"Ok. And hers?"

"Mac Dixon."

"Alright. We'll see what we can do" she said going back inside to where they took the girl.

Merle arrived a moment later on his bike. He entered the room ready to kill everyone who tried to stop him from seeing his little sister. That was until he saw Daryl leaning on a wall next to one of the door. Looking grumpy as always

"Hey Darlina!" Daryl looked up "how's she?"

"No idea." He replied "they just took her in. Nothing since. You are the one who should have signed."

Merle groaned and walked around the room. "Nah, you'll have less problems than I could with a signature"

He ended up talking to a nurse who had big boobs and seemed to enjoy his flirting. Daryl rolled his eyes.

The nurse talking to Merle smiled and entered the room where they took the girl.

Merle smiled and waited for her to come back

"The hell was that?" Daryl asked

"That, little brother, was our way of knowing how little Mac is."

"What the fuck?"

"You'll see, Darlina, you'll see"

"Come with me." The nurse said opening the door for them and led them to room 285

The nurse let both brothers in first and closed the door.

The girl was on the bed. She had a tube going through her mouth to help her breathe.

explained.

"She was lucky, you brought her in time."

"Nice job Darlina" Merle said sarcastically smiling. Daryl just looked at the doctor and help quiet. "She had two broken ribs on the right side and three on the left side. One of which broke in more than one area. Unfortunately it moved. She had a collapsed lung. blood pressure dropping more and more each second, which means she had internal bleeding somewhere. We had to open her left side to look where the blood was coming from. We cauterised the injuries that caused the lung to collapse and fixed that. Now she'll have to stay here until she's able to breathe by herself."

* * *

I was expelled yesterday and Merle put me to work today. He said Im going to help them from now on.

I spent my day with one some random guy because we needed chemicals for the cooking. He will take them to my brothers later.

Guess who's the only one that fits through windows!

Stealing chemicals is harder than it seems, but I nail it. I'm actually happy to bring backup.

Anyway, I'm back home. I walk to the door and take a note on it. It reads:

 ** _"We'll be late today._**

 ** _Thanks for the help._**

 ** _No need to tell you who wrote this, right?_**  
 ** _Ps: dad invited a friend. Stay away from him_**  
 ** _See you at 19:00"_**

That is definitely Daryl's handwriting. I open the door and go inside.  
Dad is still drinking? Wow. New record. He's been drunk since last week.  
I walk in and head to my room. I look at the clock.

18:55... I wont be alone for long.  
Dad and the other guy are in the living room watching an old soccer game.

Must be recorded.  
The old man looks at me  
"Where the fuck were you?" His fat friend is eyeing me in a way I find nasty. What the fuck?  
"Why do you ask?"  
"Answer my fucking question!" Ugh, he stinks!  
"Where do you think I was? School maybe?"  
"Don't lie to me, you little piece of shit! You were expelled yesterday like your stupid brothers when they were your age!. Maybe even bitched around like your whore mother!"

I'm tired of this. I wont let him talk to me like that! Fuck him!

"cool! I don't care. Also, why don't you tell my brothers what you think about them? They'll be here any minute. Oh wait! I forgot you don't have the guts to do it! And tell your whale friend there to stop eyeing me like that."  
"Is that the right way to talk to adults? I am the authority here! You owe me respect!"  
Ok. i just remembered that Daryl said that I should stay out of trouble. I will, if dad leaves me alone. "No. It's not. I'm sorry."  
"Good" he smiles. "Now come here." I don't want to go near him or his friend. I just stay there quiet. "Fucking...! I told you to come here! Now!"  
I walk slowly.  
He wont hurt me, right?  
"Now be a good girl and tell my friend here you are sorry for calling him whatever the fuck you called him"  
I stop walking. What?! No! Fuck that! "I will if he stops looking at me like that."

"Like what?"

"Like Fucking nasty, man!"  
"What did you said?!"  
"I said fucking nasty! You'll have to respect me if you want me to respect you!"  
"You little shit!" He tries to hit me. I grab his wrist with both hands. Shit I fucked up.  
I look at the clock. 19:07 Where are you, Daryl?!  
He grabs me by the collar of my shirt. Damn. He is old but he's still really strong even when he's drunk.  
He slaps me and throws me as far as he could. I hit my head in the wall near the kitchen.  
I am dizzy now. Great.  
His friend is just there looking at us as if watching a film. I wonder if he's waiting for something.  
Will starts kicking me. I can't get up. I can't breathe. I can't do nothing.  
"Dad!" I scream. I start crawling to the table. I remember Merle hid a gun there. I was there when he glued it with duct tape. "Stop." It hurts. Tears start rolling down my cheeks.  
I hear the truck. My brothers are back. His fat friend keeps looking.  
"Stop!" I can't reach the gun.  
"Shut up already!" He shouts. I feel how my ribs pop and crack again and again with each kick.  
I try to call Merle but my voice is not strong enough, almost like a whisper. I try again. A weird sound leaves my throat.

Will is not stopping. He seems to enjoy it.  
"Merle!" I call my brother with all the strength I have left. I cry for help.  
They enter the house running. They look at us in shock.  
"What the fuck are you watching, asshole! Get the fuck out of here!" Daryl pulls the fat man outside. I think he will beat the shit out of him.  
Merle jumps like a cat over dad and punches him hard like he did to me.  
"You like that?" He says to him "you seem to enjoy beatings"  
"Merle, stop." Daryl yells when he comes back inside.

His left hand looks sore. He did beat that guy.  
Now he pulls Merle away from dad.  
The old man apologizes over and over. He sounds terrified.

Daryl kneels next to me and presses slightly on my side to see the damage.  
I sob in pain.  
He removes his hand.  
The pain is incredibly strong. I can only look at him.  
The pain becomes more intense when Merle lifts me up  
Then...  
Darkness...

* * *

I feel tired. My eyelids are really heavy. To be honest I've never felt like that, I don't like it.

I feel a stinging pain on my left side. It burns! What's going on?!

I struggle to open my eyes and see Daryl and Merle talking with someone. Its a woman who says "She's a strong kid. She's out of danger right now."

W...where am I?! It hurts! I try to talk but something just wont let me! What is this?

I try to move but it hurts more every time I try.

The woman sees me and tells Merle to calm me down. She says if I don't, I'll break the stitches and bleed again. Stitches? Again?

Merle moves to my side and strokes my head carefully. Whats going on, Merle?

Please get me out of here. Make it stop!

"You don't move, ok?" I look at him in the eye. "If you move it's gonna be worse and we don't want that. Do we, princess?"

No. I don't want that.

I stop trying to seat and look at my brother. Even breathing feels weird. As if I wasn't the one controlling it. The thing in my throat is not helping at all.

I am scared.

"How long will it take?" Daryl asks.

How long will what take?

The woman replies. "That depends on her. A few days. Maybe a week or two maximum. After that she may go home but wont be able to run or exercise. Anything that may exhaust her. Painkillers will keep her calm."

Daryl nods and looks back at me, then he looks at Merle and asks for a moment of privacy to talk to Merle.

I am so tired. I couldn't even notice when she was gone.

"What do we do with the old man?" I hear Daryl ask. Suddenly all the memories come back to my brain.

It feels like a bomb exploding inside my head. I don't like it. We can't do anything about him. He's our father. We can't let him rot in the can, can we?

"Nothing. He should have learned his lesson by now." Merle seems to think just like me.

"This people ain't going to care that. They're going to ask more stuff about what happened"

"Well, take him somewhere then! He loves going to those random hunting trips with you and uncle Jess, make him disappeared for a few weeks." Merle says.

The pain is gone by now. I'm starting to fall asleep.

Painkillers, right.

"And what about her?"

"Oh, she ain't going nowhere! Look at her, Daryl. She's completely high!"

Daryl hesitates for a second and says. "I'll call uncle Jess in the morning"

I hear him say something else, but his voice sounds distorted.

I am so, so tired.

I'll just rest my eyes for a bit.

* * *

 **Now...**

Maggie is sitting on a rocking chair. I am next to her, on the floor.

We're watching the dark emptiness of the night as we talk.

She's cool. A bit curious, but cool.

"You know," she starts "the guys in your group seem a little..."

"A little what?"

"Well, Ive seen four of them and two of them seem like they're going to kill everyone just like that. First chance they have" she must have seen Daryl when she found Lori.

"They wont hurt you. Not if you don't give them a reason to do so." I smile. "One of the guys in my group is going to like you. A lot." She looks at me grinning.

"The asian guy."

I laugh "oh, you saw him?"

Maggie raises her eyebrows and nods with a funny tone in her voice. "Oh, I did." We laugh "Can I ask you something?"

"What?"

"Why were you in the woods when the kid got shot?"

I sigh "Shit happens."

"Shit happens." She repeats.

We see a light moving in the distance. Maggie looks at it with a serious expression.

"We've got company. Your friends are coming"

A jeep stops in front of the entrance. There are two people talking inside. I cannot see them clearly. It is too dark.

They hesitate for a moment and then come out of the truck.

Glenn and T-dog approach the door nervously. Maggie and I are watching them.

They haven't even noticed out presence. I am amused by it.

"So do we ring the bell? I mean it looks like people live here." SERIOUSLY?!

Maggie says "Did you close the gate up the road when you drove in?"

Glenn jumped! I laugh.

"Yes, we closed it. Did the latch and everything. Nice to see you again."

I notice T-Dog's arm. Looks like they patched him up.

Maggie seems to notice it as well. Shes not happy with it. She looks at the wound and then at Glenn.

"Its not a bite." I say. "I saw when it happened."

"Then what is it?"

T-Dog explains "I cut myself pretty bad. Car door."

Glenn shows a little bottle with medicine in it. He says "We have some painkillers and antibiotics." Are those Merle's meds?!

I am pissed now. Why do they have Merle's things? They touched the bike didn't they?

"Come on inside.I'll make you something to eat."

I give Glenn a warning look. He notices.

I don't like the idea of them taking my brother's stuff. I won't fight about it though. We have enough problems.

* * *

We're in the kitchen now. A woman is helping T-Dog. The rest of us are just watching. Rick and Lori are arguing outside so we prefer to not bother them.

I am leaning on the wall while the others are sitting around the table. Glenn said that Daryl gave them the medicine. I can't complain then. As long as they didn't just took it like that.

"You got here right in time. This couldn't go untreated much longer." The woman says as she finishes with T-Dogs bandage. "Merle Dixon. Is that your friend who gave you the antibiotics?"

I answer the question "No, ma'am. Merle was my brother."

"Merle's no longer with us." Glenn tells them "Daryl gave us those."

"Daryl?"

"My other brother. Younger than Merle."

T-Dog mumbles "Not sure I'd call him a friend."

I look at him."You better do, he saved your sorry ass today."

The woman seems unhappy with my language. "She's right. This doxycycline might have just saved your life." Then she looks back at me "You know what your brother was taking it for?"

"The clap."

"Venereal Disease." Glenn says. "That's what Daryl told us."

"I'd say Merle Dixon's clap was the best thing to ever happen to you."

T-Dog seems uncomfortable "I'm really trying not to think about that."

I laugh.

"Yeah, you better don't."

Maggie gave us some food. We finished eating and went our own ways around the house, of course not upstairs. That's Greene privacy. We wont mess with that.

* * *

I walk to the living room and look at all the books around. I like reading.

I look around to ask if I can take one and read it.

I am alone.

I take one and start reading.

It is about a kid in Brooklyn who's father left him and his mom alone. The kid goes out with his friends and starts growing a little twisted.

Not twisted as in gay, twisted as in 'what the fuck is going on around me? Fuck everyone'.

I read for about two hours. I really want to know what happens to Harry and his weirdo 'I didn't know girls don't have a penis. I am so curious and get involved in the mafia. I have another personality who kills people and makes me fuck my boss's maid' awkwardly shy stuff, but I better see how Carl is doing.

See if Lori and Rick need something. Rick is telling Lori how everything happened.

He's telling her about the deer.

"Before it happened we were standing there in the woods and this deer just crossed right in front of us" he says "I swear it just planted itself there and looked at Carl right in the eye." I stop and stand silently in the doorway. I don't want to ruin the moment. I will wait. I remember everything as he's telling the story. It was the perfect moment. For the four of us. Almost magical.

Rick keeps going "I looked at Carl looking at that deer, and that deer looking right back at Carl. And that moment just...Slipped away. It slipped away. That's what he was talking about when he woke up, not about getting shot or what happened at the church." Carl woke up? That has to be a good sign. "He talked about something beautiful, something living. There's still a life for us, a place maybe like this. It isn't all death out there. It can't be. We just have to be strong enough after everything we've seen to still believe that"

I smile. I like how Rick is always making us keep going. He's a good man.

"Still" Lori says "why is it better for Carl to live in this world?" I can't believe she's asking that after Rick's words.

"Why is it better for Carl to live even in this world?" Rick asks back "He talked about the deer, Lori. He talked about the deer."

I decide to knock. Make my presence known.

Lori wipes her eyes as fast as she can. I step into the room.

"I um.. Am I interrupting something?" Hell, I know I am. I just want to see if they need something I can help with.

"No." Rick says "what is it?"

"I was just wondering if you needed something."

"We're ok right now." Lori says. "Thank you, Mac."

I smile "No need to thank."

Hershel enters the room I turn and look at him. I better leave them.

I nod in Rick's direction. He nods back.

I walk out of the room and lean on the wall next to it. I don't think Hershel means good news.

Hershel comes out of the room. He calls the old woman, Maggie and his other daughter. They enter the room fast and close the door.

I know what they are going to do. They will risk the surgery.

I walk out of the house and stand on the porch. I don't know what to think...

I wait a second and see lights coming. Then I see the blue truck Shane drove to the High School. I smile and Run inside.

I open the door before Hershel does anything and say loudly "Shane's back!"

Rick looks at me. He and Lori look at each other. He says "You stay here with him."

* * *

Shane is walking towards us. He has a bag on his shoulder and seems to have a broken ankle.

"Carl?" He asks

Rick tells him there's still a chance.

The others ask for Otis. He shakes his head. Hershel says not to tell Patricia.

Now I know she wasn't Hershel's wife.

At least until they're done with the surgery.

Glenn, T-Dog, Rick, Lori and I are listening to Shane while the Greene family are working on Carl

"They kept blocking us at every turn." Shane says "We had nothing left. We were down to 10 rounds. Then he said...he said he'd cover me and that I should keep going. So that's what I did. I just I kept going...I looked back and he...I tried. He wanted to make it right."

Looks like Otis died a hero. Looks like I judged him too early.

He was a good man.

* * *

We hear footsteps. Hershel comes to the living room with a relieved look on his face. Rick and Lori stand. "He seems to have stabilised."

"Oh God." Lori says. Her face changes from being worried to hopeful. "I don't have words." She says

Rick says "Wish I did. How do I tell Patricia about Otis?"

"You go to Carl." Shane says "I'll go with Hershel."

"Stay." Maggie tells him handing him some clothes."The bathroom's upstairs."

"Thank you" he says taking them. There's something wrong with Shane. I can tell he's got something in mind.

"They won't fit well. They were Otis's." Maggie walks away.

Wow. She might as well said 'you killed him. Use his clothes as a reminder, fucker.'

I would do the same.

Well, depending on the case.

Rick already came back without Merle, but he's suffering enough now. Maybe more than he needs to.

Anyway. If someone came back without Daryl, I would remind them every day of their sorry miserable lives.


	8. Unconcious hug

I open my eyes slowly. It is morning already.

The night went incredibly fast.

I find myself yawning in the living room. Everyone is awake.

Why didn't they woke me up? Not even Maggie to kick me out of the house.

I hear voices outside.

The rest of the group has arrived.

I greet my brother and the others.

Rick says "He'll pull through, thanks to Hershel and his people."

"And Shane." Lori, really? "We'd have lost Carl if not for him"

Thanks Mac, you helped too.

No? Well I'm the one who got here first.

You're welcome Lori.

You're fucking welcome.

* * *

"Blessed be God, father of our lord Jesus Christ." We are all around a pile of rocks.

"Praise be to him for the gift of our brother Otis..." Hershel says holding a bible. Some of them are crying. "...for his span of years, for his abundance of character..."

Daryl and I have never been the religious type, but we're in their farm, meaning they do what they want. We respect their beliefs. Mostly because we know what it is to loose a family member, and to be honest, it sucks. "...Otis, who gave his life to save a child's, now more than ever, our most precious asset." I look at everyone around us. They're all quiet, except for the Greene family, they are praying.

Hershel keeps talking "We thank you, God, for the peace he enjoys in your embrace. He died as he lived, in Grace." We are all quiet for a minute. Then the farmer talks again.

"Shane, will you speak for Otis?" We all look at Shane. He cut his hair... Or more like shaved...

"I'm not good at it." I don't know if I'm the only one who notices his weird attitude. He seems so nervous all the time...

The old lady, who's name just won't stick in my head, says "You were the last one with him. You shared his final moments. Please." She's the one crying the most. I think she is his wife... Or was... Maybe I'm wrong. "I need to hear." She says "I need to know his death had meaning."

Now, this will be interesting!

Lets see what happened.

Shane nods and limps forward. He takes a rock and walks to the pile saying.

"We were about done. Almost out of ammo. We were down to pistols by then. I was limping." No shit! "It was bad. Ankle all swollen up..."

He stops for a second and looks at each of us. The he keeps going.

"He gave me his backpack. Shoved me ahead" another pause.

"'Run' he said...He said, 'I'll take the rear. I'll cover you.' When I looked back..." The lady cries again. She sobs and sobs. Shane keeps going "If not for Otis, I'd have never made it out alive. Neither Carl. It was Otis." He says putting the rock in the pile on top of the others "He saved us... Both. If any death ever had meaning, it was his."

Poor Otis. He was a good man.

* * *

Lori and I are organising the food we have. Cans, fruit, everything. Putting away the rotten ones.

We set the camp next to a huge tree near the farmhouse.

We've been quiet since she asked me for help. She seems worried.

"You ok?"

"Yeah," she says. "I'm just... thinking.."

"Alright..." I better not push her. We keep working quiet. I only speak to ask her things about the food.

This is one of the most awkward moments in my life.

Not cool.

I'm getting tired of this but we're almost done.

Suddenly we hear Daryl calling me. We turn to where the men are talking.

I get up quickly and run to him. He just saved my brain from breaking.

As I approach I hear Rick saying. "We can finally get this thing organised. We'll grid the whole area, start searching in teams."

I stand next to my brother like always and hear Hershel talk "Not you. You gave three units of blood. You wouldn't be hiking five minutes in this heat before passing out."

"What are going to do?" I ask

"Find Sophia." Shane says. "Dead or alive applies well in this situation" Daryl gives him a death glare.

Hershel says "Push your ankle now, you'll be laid up a month, no good to anybody."

"Guess it's just us" Daryl says stepping forward to the map. "We're gonna head back to the creek, work our way from there." He says tracing our route with his finger.

Hershel looks at Rick.

"you letting him risk that girl?"

"That's his sister." Rick says "it's not my call."

"We barely have medical supplies. If something bad happens to her..."

"We know that." Daryl tells him. "Don't think I don't know what I'm doing. I'll take care of her."

Hershel is quiet now. Absolutely not happy about anything around him.

"I can still be useful." Shane insists "I'll drive up to the interstate, see if Sophia wandered back."

"All right" rick agrees. "We do that tomorrow, then. The only ones moving today are Daryl and Mac."

"That means we can't have our people out there with just knives. They need the gun training we've been promising them."

Hershel interrupts them "I'd prefer you not carrying guns on my property.

We've managed so far without turning this into an armed camp."

Shane does not like the idea.

"All due respect, you get a crowd of those things wandering in here..."

"Look, we're guests is your property" Rick assures Hershel "and we will respect that. First things first: Set camp, find Sophia."

Shane says he's gonna gather and secure all the weapons.

He turns and goes.

* * *

Daryl and I go and set our tent.

Once finished, we take our weapons out.

He says I need to learn how to clean them.

He teaches me how to open the Beretta. He cleans piece by piece carefully, explaining how to keep them clean and working.

Once he's done he puts all the pieces together and hands it to me. He says he'll teach me how to clean the revolver later.

I take the Beretta and put my knife inside the improvised holster I wrap around my leg.

He takes his crossbow and we head out.

"Daryl!" We are just walking past the farmhouse when Rick comes running behind us.

"You okay on your own?"

He just says. "We'll be back before dark."

Rick nods and steps back a little.

We keep walking away and into the woods.

"Rick told me you ran for help when his kid got shot." Shit. I should have told Rick to keep quiet.

"Not like I ran too much."

"Almost three miles nonstop."

"It wasn't that bad" we keep walking and paying attention to any sign that might tell us where Sophia is.

"No. It wasn't"

"Right?"

"For any other fucker who wasn't stuck in a hospital with a collapsed lung"

"I'm ok now."

He stops and turns. "No. You're not" he says trying to be patient. "You don't know if something could have fucking happened to you. Two months ago you were plugged to a fucking respirator."

"Nothing will fucking happen to me!"

"You don't know that shit!"

"Daryl. Shut up"

"What?"

"Shut up," I pull my Beretta out and point right between the eyes quickly.

I pull the trigger.

Daryl looks at me confused as I see the body fall lifeless on the floor with a slight thud, then he turns his head to see the body of a walker with a hole on its head.

"What the fuck?" He asks facing me again I start laughing.

"Your voice attracted him." He stares at me with an angry expression. A really angry one.

"I was talking because of you! Focus on looking for Sophia!"

"Alright. I'm sorry." I am still laughing.

"Shut up and walk." He says hitting my head slightly.

We walk and keep looking.

* * *

We're deep into the woods.

I've been thinking on what he said. Two months ago...

Two months ago The world was still full of people.

If that was two months ago, that means I'm about to be sixteen! Or... Am I sixteen now?

"Hey, Daryl?" He grunts "do you know what day we're living in?"

"I know it's October"

"Before or after fifth?"

"I don't know. Why?"

He thinks for a moment...

"Shit." He whispers. We stop walking. Theres an abandoned farmhouse a few feet from us. "I don't know. What do you think?" He looks around and we start walking again

"I don't know. I don't blame you if you forgot about it. There's a lot going on these days."

"I'll tell you what" he says. We're almost in the farmhouse. "We'll ask someone back at the camp. Whatever day we're in, I'll let you take whatever you want from the next place we're in. Deal?"

"Deal" I say. He kicks the door open with his crossbow up.

"Watch behind us."

"Aye, Sir" we walk in.

We search the entire place. The only thing we hear is the wood cracking beneath us.

I walk into a pink room on the second floor and look around.

There are posters, a guitar, an awesome bed... Its sad to see all of this abandoned. The second floor looks like nothing happened, just dirty and powerless.

"anything useful?" Daryl asks entering the room.

"Nope. But look at this place!" I say walking around. "I wish my room was like this.. Well, before the outbreak. And look a diary!"

I take the diary and start reading it.

"Mac, don't..."

"Who cares? This girl is dead! What is she going to come back from the death and take revenge?" I laugh. Daryl sighs at my lame joke and looks at me unnamused "This is a normal teenager world? I never did anything like this."

"yeah. I'm proud of Merle for not letting you be one of those. I'm thankful for that"

"wow! You should see all the things in here!" I say holding the diary

"Stop reading that! It's gonna burn your brain!" He says trying to take the object away from me.

I jump back to the bed making a 'whatthefuckwasthat' lame 360

"Woah! Hold your horses!"

"Mac, I swear to..."

"are condoms such a big deal?" I laugh looking at him. He freezes and turns red. "I mean.. They look uncomfortable...are they?"

"ugh... Sometimes..."

I flip the page and stop there. I look at Daryl in the eye. He looks so uncomfortable right now! "Look! Balloons!" I joke holding a condom up. It was in between the pages of the diary. I just hope it wasn't used before!

"Enough! Give me that shit!" He says walking towards me.

"Fine. I was just fucking with you." I say handing him the diary.

He throws it on the bed and waits for me to walk out of the room.

I walk out and a few steps down the stairs. I turn to see him on top of the stairs.

He seems confused, like he asks himself 'what just happened?' I walk up the stairs, take his hand and say.

"I love you brother, be safe" He looks even more confused until I let go of his hand and run down the stairs cracking.

I put the condom in his hand.

"what the...!" I hear him say "fuck you!"

I feel something small and soft hitting my back!

Eww! He threw it at me!

HE THREW A FUCKING CONDOM AT ME!

* * *

A rat runs out of the kitchen when my brother opens the door. I jump back. It scared me.

Daryl laughs "scared of a little rat, pussy?"

"It surprised me. Don't call me that" Theres nothing but an improvised bed in there, "you think she could have slept there?"

"A lot of things could have slept in there." He says walking out the kitchen door to the back yard. I follow him.

"Sophia!" He screams as hard as he can. Nothing happens. He tries again "Sophia!" Same. He sighs disappointed. "She ain't here."

"Look." I tell him walking in the direction of a Cherokee rose. "Do you remember the story?"

"Yeah. You used to run to my room when it was raining. You always had night terrors and wouldn't fall asleep if I didn't tell you that story." I smile softly and nod. How could I ever forget that? He only let me sleep with him when I had a nightmare. Sometimes he even held little me like a teddy bear while telling the story with a sleepy voice.

I pull the Cherokee rose and hand it to him. He looks at it carefully "Do you think Carol would like it?"

"I think she would. It's a sign of hope."

He nods. He puts the rose between the arrows on his crossbow to keep it from falling "Lets go back before it dies."

I nod. We turn and walk back to Hershel's farm.

* * *

"Hey, Andrea!"

"Look who's back!" She says on top of the RV. "Team squirrel has returned from its search!"

It is dark by the time we got back. I am surprised because we're usually back before night.

"Where's Carol?" My brother asks dryly "I need to talk to her"

"Well, its nice to see you too!"

"Just tell him where she is" I say

"Dinner. Like everyone else around the fire." she answers. Daryl walks past us and enters the vehicle. "found anything?" Andrea asks me.

"Nothing useful... By the way, do you know the date?"

"No. Dale should know it. He's the only one around keeping track of time. Why?"

"I'll just look for him. Nothing special."

"Alright." She leans back on the chair. "Have fun."

"Will do."

I walk across the camp. I sit next to Carol. Next to her is Daryl, Glenn, Rick, Lori, and the rest of them.

"How was the search?" Rick asks Daryl

"Still nothing. What about you. Anything interesting around here?"

"Theres a lot going on. I'll talk to you about it tomorrow"

My brother nods.

We talk and eat for a while until no one else has anything to say.

We are quiet now.

Carol breaks the silence.

"Are you sure you found nothing?"

"Theres not much we can do." My brother takes the rose and hands it to her. Its the cutest thing I've ever seen Daryl do. The rest of the group smiles.

"A flower?"

"Its a Cherokee rose. Don't y'all know the story?" Some shake their heads, or nod, some just stay quiet staring at us. "Really people? Don't y'all's know nothing?"

Rick smiles slightly "maybe you can tell us" Daryl sighs. He looks at me.

I love the story. I say "go ahead"

Rick snorts

"Alright." He says "When American soldiers were moving Indians off their land the Cherokee mothers were leaving a trail of tears behind them. They were grieving and crying so much 'cause they were losing their little ones along the way from exposure and disease and starvation...A lot of them just disappeared...They were desperate. So the elders, they said a prayer. Asked for a sign to uplift the mothers' spirits, to give them strength and hope... The next day this rose started to grow right where the mothers' tears fell."

I can see Carol's eyes wet and huge silent tears rolling down he cheek.

Daryl tells her. "I'm not fool enough to think there's any flowers blooming for my brother. But I believe this one bloomed for your little girl."

Everyone is quiet now.

The only one who speaks is Carol. "That was beautiful. Thank you."

Daryl looks down and nods slightly.

Yeah... I miss Merle too... Where are you brother? I hope you're ok..

Daryl looks up at me. He stands and says he's done for today. The rest of the group thank him for the story. He goes to the tent. I'll wait here s little.

Rick lightens the mood by telling us things he and Shane did in high school.

The melancholic atmosphere fades slowly as we laugh at him.

I finish eating. I'm full.

I stand up and thank them for the food. I follow my brother by saying "I better get going."

I walk into the tent where I find my brother sleeping.

I lay besides him.

My brain just wont stop thinking about today. What if it was Sophia sleeping in that farmhouse?

What if we had to just wait for her but we left her back there?

I sigh.

I feel Daryl move. He turns completely until he's facing my back.

He wraps his arm around me hugging me tightly.

He gives the best hugs even when he's asleep.

Goodnight brother...


	9. Please

For the past few days Daryl and I have been hunting squirrels every day when we go looking for Sophia. That's all we eat.

Squirrel and vegetables, squirrel soup, smoked squirrel, squirrel BBQ, and my favourite, when I'm out with Daryl we eat raw squirrel. Yum, protein!

"Good morning." Lori comes out of her tent. She's rubbing her eyes. She's never late. Something must've happened to her. She notices how late she woke up and says "I can't believe I slept in."

I am finishing eating a fruit I got for breakfast next to Carol, who is washing and hanging clothes.

Carol says "You must have needed it."

"Feeling all right?" I am staring at Lori. She looks tired and worried for some reason. She looks sick...

"Yeah. Next time wake me, all right? Especially on laundry day."

"Will do."

"No." Carol says "I can manage. Hey, have you seen the huge kitchen they got in there?" Lori frowns a little.

"Yes. Why"

"I wouldn't mind cooking in a real kitchen again. Maybe we all pitch in and cook dinner for Hershel and his family tonight." Cooking? I don't know nothing about cooking. Sounds fun though. "Kind of looking for things to keep my mind occupied."

Lori looks at Carol. She seems to be thinking about it "After everything they've done for us, seems like the least we could do. Mac, You mind extending the invitation?"

"Sorry. Would just feel more right coming from you."

"How so?"

"You're Rick's wife."

"And?"

Carol smiles "she's right. It sort of makes you our unofficial first lady."

"Morning, ladies" Rick's voice catches our attention.

Lori says "Morning, baby"

"Good morning" Carol replies shyly

I just answer "morning..."

"Can I take this child for a bit?" He says putting his hand on my shoulder. "I need to see Daryl's searching plan today. She may be needed"

Lori replies "Sure. Just be careful, she's still a kid."

"It's hard to remember that..." Rick says "She'll be fine."

We stand and walk to where the others are.

"All right, everyone's getting new search grids today.

If she made it as far as the farmhouse Daryl found, she might have gone further east than we've been so far."

Hershel's son, or so I think. Comes running. He looks nervous. "I'd like to help I know the area pretty well and stuff."

"Hershel's okay with this?"

"yeah. He said I should ask you."

"All right then."

Shane arrives after him. Grumpy as always.

Seriously... Something must have happened to him.. He wasn't like that

"Nothing about what Daryl found screams Sophia to me. Anyone could have been holed up in that farmhouse.

Daryl says "Whoever slept in that cupboard was no bigger than yay-high. It's a good lead."

I say "Maybe we'll pick up her trail again."

"No."Daryl says "maybe _I'll_ pick up her trail again. I'm gonna borrow a horse, head up to this ridge right here, take a bird's-eye view of the whole grid."

Rick nods. "Good idea" hell no!

"No it's not! You're not going alone"

"You'll stay with Rick today. He'll tell you what to do. I'm going by myself. If she's up there I'll spot her." I sigh.

T-dog says "are you sure you don't want to take Mac with you? Maybe you'll see your chupacabra up there too."

"Chupacabra?" Rick asks confused. Oh not this again.

"You never heard this? Our first night in camp, Daryl tells us that the whole thing reminds him of a time when he went squirrel hunting and he saw a chupacabra." Says Shane. Hershel's kid laughs causing my brother to look at him angrily.

"What are you braying at, jackass?"

"You believe in a blood-sucking dog?"

"Do you believe dead people walking around?" That was a good one

The guy just stops laughing. He reaches for a rifle but Rick stops him.

"Ever fire one before?"

"Well, if I'm going out, I want one."

"Yeah," Daryl replies. "and people in hell want slurpees." Oh dear God! Sarcasm! You're making progress, brother.

"Why don't you come train tomorrow?" Shane says

Rick tells him "For now he can come with us."

"He's yours to babysit then. Tell me when your babysitting turn ends so we can really get our job done." Shane fires back referring to me having to stay with Rick.

Not cool, Shane. Not cool... I don't need no babysitter.

* * *

Taking care of the chicken. That's what rick told me to do until he's back.

Not all of them though. Just a specific one. His name is Bob, and he's not old enough to be called rooster. He even looks like a hen. A really fat hen.

I am sitting on the floor with the animal walking around me..

This is the most boring thing I've done in my entire life...

Bob stops what he's doing and looks directly at me.

It's actually creepy. I look at him moving back slightly.

He walks and stands over my legs.

Bob gets closer to my face. He looks like he wants me to do something.

We stare at each other.

This is great! My brother, Rick, T-Dog, Andrea and Shane are out there risking their lives while I'm having a moment with a chicken.

An awkward moment with a chicken...

If you thought taking care of a chicken was awkward, wait til the chicken stares at you like waiting for something.

Maybe he wants me to pet him.

I reach for his little head to pet him gently.

Bob bites me. He runs away when I scream.

I curse loudly and run for him.

Come here you little piece of...

I try to catch Bob.

I run, jump even try to tackle the chicken around the farm. It's no use.

Bob moves his wings as if he was trying to fly. Chickens don't fly, idiot! Don't even try!

I try to tackle it again while trying to not let my weight fall on him completely.

I got the chicken!

I take him carefully from his little chicken armpits and lift him until he's facing me with those black eyes that are just too big for his head.

He seems fine. I'm glad I didn't hurt him.

"You're one ugly rooster..." I say.

I put him back on the floor and he runs to where the other chickens are. Someone's feeding them. He'll be fine.

A sudden pain strikes my left side.

It feels like something stabbing me.

I hold myself tightly and try to breathe to calm myself down.

Woah...really should try to stop running.

The pain fades slowly so I stand normally again.

I walk back to camp. Maybe some water will help me.

"You're pregnant." I hear Glenn saying

What? Who? Really? I hide behind a tent to listen. I should not be doing this. I hate nosy people, and look at me!

"You can't tell anybody, okay?" Lori? She's pregnant?!

"You haven't told him yet?"

"No."She answers. Told who? Rick or Shane?

I mean, I know Rick is her husband, but it not hard to guess that she did stuff with Shane since we all thought Rick was dead. They were actually dating. Or at least looked like it.

Does Rick know about this?...

I better ignore it... I didn't hear anything...

I see Rick walking to where he left me. I move to where he is, trying to ignore the slight pain that came back in my lower ribs.

He tells me to follow him. I do as he says

"Whats wrong?" I ask as soon as I notice his strange mood.

"I need to talk to Lori."

"You want me to..."

"I want you to stay right next to me. Where I can see you."

"Why?"

"I have my reasons." He says. "Plus, I don't want to be responsible of loosing another Dixon.".

Oookaaaayyyyy... What happened out there?

We walk to where Lori is. Will she tell him?

"Something wrong?" She asks as we walk next to a fence where we can see the whole farm.

"I just had a long talk with Shane. He wants to call off the search."

Is he crazy? Sophia can't just be alone out there forever. Anyway, this is not my call. I'm actually standing a bit far to give them some privacy. I don't know why Rick wants to have me with him. Must be important.

"What do you think? What if it was Carl? Would you want us to keep looking?"

Lori looks at me, then she answers "If it was Carl, yes I'd want to know one way or another." Rick nods.

"Shane says my good intentions are making us weaker, that I can't make the hard decisions for the good of the group."

"They're all hard decisions."

"But maybe I'm holding on to a way of thinking that doesn't make sense anymore. He says it's math, basic survival How much fuel, how much food, how much ammo. Not much room in that equation for being soft. It's pretty simple when you start thinking of life like that."

"Hey!" Lori stops him "None of us were prepared to be living life this way.

You are making the best decisions you can with the information you have.

I don't see soft in that."

I see Maggie approaching. I clear my throat loudly so they turn and look at her coming too.

"My dad wants to talk to you." She says one shes here.

* * *

Apparently Hershel is mad at us.

Looks like the blonde kid lied. He did not have permission to go out today, or taking a gun.

Also it looks like he lied when he said Daryl could take a horse.

Rick apologizes for it and says he'll talk to him.

They have a new rule. Hershel takes care of his people, Rick takes care of us.

Good idea.

When they're done talking Rick takes me with him to check the fences around the farmhouse, this time with Hershel's permission.

The pain comes back a few times while we're at it but I simply ignore it. It comes and goes.

"You alright?" Rick asks.

"Yeah. I'm a little worried. I wonder how my brother's doing."

"I'm not talking about that. You seem uncomfortable. You in pain or something?"

Am I that obvious? I hope its gone when Daryl returns. " I'm just...trying to catch my breath. That's it"

"we've been just walking."

"I know." Should I tell him? Maybe he thinks I'm weak...

"What's wrong?"

I sigh. I'll tell him.

"don't tell my brother."

He nods "go ahead"

I tell him about the pain and the strange feeling. I feel something's wrong.

He assures me everything will be fine and says he wont tell Daryl about the stabbing feeling on my side as long as I'm sure its nothing serious.

I like Rick. I can trust him more than I could ever trust my father.

Everything seems fine except for the anxiety I've been feeling. I'm worried about Daryl. He should be back by now.

* * *

We finish checking the fences and head back to camp when we hear Andrea shouting "Walker!"

We run next to the RV to see something moving. Its coming out of the woods.

"Just one?" Rick asks

"I bet I can hit it from here."

"No" I say. "The noise would attract others"

"Put the gun down." Rick says

Shane runs to the walker. Rick calls him but he wont answer.

"We got it covered." He says.

The others run behind him, including Rick.

I stand there watching them. It's just one walker. I think there's no reason for me to follow them.

Then I see the crossbow.

* * *

 _Please._

 _Let him be alive._

 _Let him be safe._

 _Let him not be a walker._


	10. Injured

I run as fast as I can.

Fuck everything else.

"Rick, stop!" I shout

I'm almost crying when I hear Glenn say. "Is that Daryl?"

No! No no no no no! Please don't do this!

"That's the third time you've pointed that thing to my head"

My heart skips a beat when I approach them and hear his voice.

Thank you.

I stand next to Rick panting. What happened to him?

He continues talking "You gonna pull the trigger or what?"

Rick puts the gun down.

A shot rings through the air. I see blood splashing out of Daryl's head.

He falls to the floor

"No!" I scream my lungs out and reach for my brother

"No!" Rick turns and shouts at Andrea "No!"

I kneel next to Daryl. He's breathing heavily.

I pull his arm around my shoulder trying to lift him up. "Rick" He comes and does the same.

We walk slowly back to the farm.

"I was kidding." Daryl says weakly.

"No shit!" I tell him

he mumbles back "Fucking traitors. " his voice becoming more and more distant

"You'll be fine. We'll fix you"

"Shut up." He stops moving. His weight falling on us. He passed out.

"Come on." Rick says.

I see Andrea running in our direction. Fucking bitch!

"Oh my God." She says "is he dead?

"Lucky for you, he ain't " I say dryly.

"Unconscious." Rick explains

"You just grazed him." Shane tells her

Glenn says "But look at him. What the hell happened? He's wearing ears."

We look at Daryl's necklace. Glenn's right. He's got ears tied around his neck with a shoelace.

Rick pulls them and hides them in his shirt. "Let's keep that to ourselves."

We keep walking. Hershel is looking at us. I hope he helps my brother.

T-dog talks behind us. He shows a rag doll "Isn't this Sophia's?" That catches everyone's attention.

We turn to look at it. He actually found something.

"Lets see what he says when he wakes up. We need to treat him first" Rick ends the conversation.

* * *

"I found it washed up on the creek bed right there."Daryl says with his finger on the map. He's laying on his side while Hershel stitches him. "She must have dropped it crossing there somewhere."

"Cuts the grid almost in half." Rick tells him

"Yeah, you're welcome."

"How's he looking?" I ask Hershel.

"I had no idea we'd be going through the antibiotics so quickly." Then he asks my brother. "Any idea what happened to my horse?"

Daryl chuckles. "Yeah, the one who almost killed me? If it's smart, it left the country."

"We call that one Nelly, as in 'Nervous Nelly'. I could have told you she'd throw you if you'd bothered to ask." He finishes the stitches by cutting the thread around the needle. "It's a wonder you people have survived this long." Then he looks at me. "He'll be all right."

"I hate to say it, but I'm with Hershel on this one." Shane enters the conversation. "Can't keep going out there, not after this

Rick seems to disagree with it. Shane keeps talking.

"The way I see it, Daryl almost died today for a doll."

"Yeah, I know how you see it."

"I'm not out to be a hard case. Just being realistic." Shane walks out. Hershel looks at Rick and then walks out too.

Rick sighs. He looks at us nodding slightly.

We nod back, then he goes.

I look at Daryl as he moves slightly grunting in pain.

"How are you feeling?"

"Best day ever" he replies.

"That bitch nearly killed you"

"She's lucky. If she could shoot properly we would both be dead by now."

I chuckle "and i would make it look like an accident."

"Don't " Daryl laughs.

Silence fills the room then. We look in different directions in an uncomfortable situation.

"When I woke up back there, and the walkers tried to bite me" Daryl starts. "I could swear I saw Merle."

I look at him shocked "you what?"

"It wasn't really him. Perhaps I'm loosing it. It just felt real."

"It kept you alive."

He nods. "It did. I just wish it was real."

"Me too..."

"What about you?"

"Me?"

"Yeah. Anything interesting?"

"I took care of a damn chicken and it bit me" Daryl smiles "then it ran away and..."

"You did it again"

"Then I checked fences around the farm with Rick." I try to avoid him "you arrived just when we were finishing."

Daryl sighs. He knows I avoided his conversation so He changes the topic.

We talk for a while about different things until I'm starting to fall asleep on the sofa next to the bed.

I say goodnight and turn to sleep.

The room is filled with silence. I wonder if my brother fell asleep too.

I fall asleep quickly. I'm so tired

* * *

The door opens. I wake up but stay in my place. I don't even open my eyes.

It's Carol. She asks Daryl how he's feeling.

"As good as I look." He says

"I brought you both some dinner. You must be starving." I hear how she puts something on the table next to the bed. Must be the food.

I hear steps and my brother says "She fell asleep a while ago...Watch out, I got stitches."

I hear how she walks a bit more, then a soft kiss. I smile slightly.

That's cute. I know how uncomfortable that is for Daryl. Plus, I don't care. I know Carol will always respect him. She wont do something to make him mad.

"You need to know something." She says before walking out. "You did more for my little girl today than her own daddy ever did in his whole life."

"I didn't do anything Rick or Shane wouldn't have done."

"I know." She tells him "You're every bit as good as them." There is a pause, then she keeps going. "Shes a good girl. Kids are one of the most important things nowadays. Take good care of her."

"I will."

It is quiet now. Carol walks out, closing the door behind her.

Daryl moves on the bed again. I feel how he stares at me.

I'm happy to have him here.

He had a close call today. A really close one.


	11. Trust

Hershel made Daryl stay in his room yesterday. Today he's out but others wont let him do much and because of it I'll help Rick and Shane to let him rest a bit more.

Carl is out here too... Somewhere...

I'm sitting on the floor next to my brother inside our tent.

He's playing with one of his arrows. He sticks it in the tent and pulls it out of it leaving a tiny hole in it, then repeats the process.

I'm playing with my revolver.

I load it and unload it, I clean it just as Daryl told me to do it.

"So... this goes here?" I ask trying to figure how to put it back together.

Daryl turns his head and looks at the gun. He point his finger to a small piece next to me. He says "Put this piece first, then you can put that one in place and you're done"

"Alright." I mumble while putting the last pieces of my gun together.

When I'm done I stand up. I walk to where my backpack is, open it and store the gun in there.

I turn my head when I sense movement. Andrea is coming. I wonder what she wants now...

"Morning." She says as she steps in our tent. I look at hr with a serious expression.

Daryl replies "Morning."

"Sup?" She asks me

"Nothing." I say "Nothing's up."

"Why?"

"Just because... " I tell her dryly and turn to fix things in my backpack to be ready for going out with Shane and Rick.

"Ok..." She turns to face Daryl. She hands him a book. "This is not that great, but... Its something. It'll give you something to do while you're here."

Daryl takes the book and starts checking on it. He smiles and says "What kind of book is this?"

"What?"

" no pictures?" He laughs

"I'm so sorry." Andrea tells him. He stares at her "I feel like shit."

"Oh really?" I say. Daryl gives me a death glare.

He looks at me as a warning, and then back to Andrea "Yeah, you and me both." He tells her

"I don't expect you to forgive me, but if there's anything I can do"

"You were trying to protect the group." He says "We're good"

"Thank you" she says, then she walks out of the tent.

"hey" Daryl calls her "shoot me again, and you'd best pray I'm dead." She smiles at him and keeps walking

"Or not." I mumble. Daryl looks back at me

"Stop it."

"Fine. I'm sorry"

"I know you're not." He finishes the talk by taking the book and starting to read it.

* * *

"I heard you were looking for me. You're going to give me lessons on how to shoot?" I say sarcastically as I walk to where Shane is

I'm not sure what he's doing, but he seems concentrated.

He's been acting like an asshole for a few days now. I don't like the new Shane.

"I hate your fucking sarcasm. We need some help supervising some of the people. Saw you shooting last time."

"Ok. Good to hear you like my shooting. And Sorry. I forgot who I'm talking to."

"Don't even start, Dixon." He says standing up and walking closer to me with an intimidating look on his eyes. He stands too close for my liking, but I know he wont do shit. "You're in, or not?"

"Alright, Just don't give me that macho shit cause you ain't getting nothing from it." I say pushing him slightly. "As long as it helps the group, tell me what I need to do and consider it done." He seems to understand and backs up a little.

"Ok. Rick will..."

"Shane!" Carl's voice interrupts him. He sighs

We look at the kid coming "I want to learn to shoot too." He says walking excitedly towards us. "Can you teach me?"

"Well" shane replies "that's... that's up to your parents."

"Can you talk to them? They'll listen to you."

"I.. I don't know, man."

"Please!"

"We'll see, okay?"

"Ok." Carl nods and smiles. I see how he's holding a something behind him.

"Hey." I tell him. "What do you have there?" His expression changes drastically.

"I.. umm..."

"Let me see what you've got there." Shane commands him.

Carl hesitates a little, then he shows the gun. Shane takes him. He pulls him back to camp, right where Rick and Lori are.

I feel bad for the poor kid. He just wants to help, plus, he needs to know how to defend himself.

Both parents look confused. They don't know where he took the gun from.

Dale says Carl asked for a walkie so he let him in the RV. We assume thats how he got it.

Rick seems disappointed and Lori seems mad because their kid lied to get a gun.

Carl is next to me while the others talk.

"What's he thinking?" Lori asks with a hard tone.

"He just wants to learn how to shoot." Shane replies. "He asked me to teach him. Now, it's none of my business, but I'm happy to do it."

"It's your call." Rick tells his wife.

"I'm not comfortable with it."

"Oh, don't make me out to be the unreasonable one here."

"I'm sorry, but I think you're not." I say. All of them look at me "Its not a big deal"

"Its not?" Lori asks angrily.

"No. Merle taught me when I was even younger than him. Its just self defense."

"We know what happened Merle Dixon for a reason and my son is not ending up like that" she says.

Fucking bitch! What the fuck is wrong with her?!

"Lori" Rick talks before I can tell her something "I have my concerns too, but..."

"There's no but. He was just shot. He's just back on his feet and he wants a gun"

Shane tells her "Better than him being afraid of 'em."

"There are guns in camp for a reason. He should learn to handle them safely"Rick explains

"I don't want my kid walking around with a gun."

"But how can you defend that? You can't let him go around without protection."

"He's as safe as he'll ever be right here."

"Look, everything you're saying makes perfect sense."

"It feels wrong. I mean I didn't feel good about him following you out into the woods. And I wish I'd said something. I should've gone with my gut.

"We've got to start treating him more like an adult." Rick says.

"Then he needs to act like one." I say annoyed

Lori insists "He's not mature enough to handle a gun."

"And he will never be if you don't let him!" Rick looks at me. He knows Im right!

"I'm not gonna play with it, mom. It's not a toy." Carl talks finally "I'm sorry I disappointed you, but I want to look for Sophia and I want to defend our camp. I can't do that without a gun."

"Shane's the best instructor I know." Rick says "I've seen him teach kids younger than Carl." Lori sighs. She approaches Carl and gives him a hug.

"You will take this seriously and you will behave responsibly. And if I hear from anyone in this camp that you're not living up to our expectations"

"He won't let you down"

* * *

I'm putting some gun bags on one of the cars like Shane told me to do so. I hope people get what this is for. I don't think they're ready for it, anyway.

I'm about to put mine when I hear steps behind me and Rick's voice saying "not yours". When I ask why, he says he's got stuff for me to do here.

He asks "Can I have a word with you?"

I nod

"May be a lot to ask, but I cant leave the camp unprotected." I don't see how I can make a difference. I'm just a kid.

I tell him that and look at him. My eyes showing confusion. He keeps talking "Dale and Glenn are staying too in case you need them."

"If they're staying, then why do you need me here? I can barely keep myself alive. And that because Daryl helps me."

"Well" Rick puts his hands on his hips with a slight smile "they'll be doing other stuff. I need someone keeping watch. Protecting others. I think I can trust you. You're good, you can do it."

"Ok, then." I tell him "you're the boss."

"Thanks. I appreciate it. You can always ask others for help if things go south"

"No problem."

After that little talk, I finish helping him with the guns and other stuff they need, like bottles. When we're done I wish him good luck and they take the others.

I walk over to the RV and climb to the top.

Wow! I can see every single thing from here. I bet Hershel's upper rooms have an awesome view.

the cars leaving the property look smaller every second. Some of the horses are eating grass near the chickens.


	12. Deadly

I turn my head to see how the camp looks from here. Looks empty except for Daryl, who looks like he's sleeping, Lori and Carol preparing something to eat, and Glenn and Dale who are whispering. I wonder what they're talking about...

I look back at the lands around us.

It is so peaceful and quiet. I can easily forget about the apocalypse.

Just as if nothing happened. Maybe even Merle will pop out of nowhere as if he never left.

What would he think of this place? About the things we've been doing? About the decisions we've taken?

"Oh dear! You scared me!"

I jump out of my thinking to look behind me. There's Dale, looking at me like he looks at everyone.

"Yeah, you did the same. Karma's a bitch, huh." I tell him.

"I thought you were with Rick."

"No, he said he wanted me here keeping watch"

"Well, now that you're being helpful, can you give me that water bottle over there?" He asks pointing at it. I reach for it and throw it to his direction. He catches the bottle and thanks me.

"Don't mention it."

"I guess I'll be seeing you later"

"Wait. How's my brother doing?"

"He seems fine. Why do you ask?" He replies looking a little nervous

"You and Glenn whispering. Is everything ok?"

"Oh. Well.. You'll know soon enough. Like the rest of the group" he says smiling a little. This confuses me even more. Is it good? Is it bad? What's going on between those two. I am now curious.

"Know what?" He ignores me, climbs down the RV and walks away "Dale!" I grunt in frustration when he wont listen.

Anyway. Its not my problem, or is it?

It smells so good. Carol and Lori can make the best things out of something gross.

Carol gave me some squirrel. Now, I've eaten a lot of squirrels in my life, but this one has something special.

They asked me to gut and skin the squirrels so they could cook them and have food ready for the rest when they're back. I wonder where Daryl is...

He always has to do something or he'll get grumpy.

* * *

"Morning sunshine! You done with your beauty sleep?"

"Fuck off"

I smile. "people are up already, didn't you want me to wake your ass up?"

"You doing a fan-fucking-tastic job. You little shit..."

"Aww! I love you too, baby bro. I thought you were a morning person. You used to wake up before anyone else did" oh, I love teasing my brother. I jump on him trying to not hurt him, just annoy him.

"I always do...cant do much progress waking up late." He replies opening one of his blue eyes. I love that about him. His eyes are beautiful. I can't imagine them milky and dead.. I prefer not to think about it and shake the thought away.

"Well, then come on. We gotta go."

Daryl sigh. He yawns and stands up pushing me away from him and outside.

We join everyone around the campfire.

I know Daryl is kind of angry at Shane for trying to convince rick to stop looking for Sophia. I know for the looks they give each other. If one more discussion happens, I swear hell will break loose.

But right now he's just more worried about his hunger. I think his wound makes him way more hungry than usual. I don't know if thats a good sign, or a bad habit slowly getting stronger. I hope the first thing...

I am trying to get some food down my throat. Its a little harder to eat when you live in a world full of rotten dead people trying to eat you.

Glenn has been looking suspicious again. He looks constantly at Dale like asking him something. They are both hiding some weird stuff from us, and I'm not the only one who notices that.

They wait until we're all finished. Thats when Glenn walks to the camp centre and says. "Guys... The barn's full of walkers."

The whole group looks up at him surprised.

What?" Andrea asks

"How would you know?" Shane follows as Glenn tries to not panic.

"I was there last night..I..heard them. I saw them."

"And you waited the whole night?"

"Dale said it was best!" Glenn says pointing at Dale as a defensive response

"You knew?" Shane asks again shocked

"It's safe" he answers. "I've been there myself, they didn't come out the entire time" well. If it wasn't we wouldn't have been here for three weeks already. He keeps talking "since we have injured people, I decided to keep it a secret for a while. We can't fight with Hershel now, can we?"

"Listen, Dale, the day we let an old grandfather take over the lead is the day I throw myself in front of a herd of walkers!" Shane states as he runs to the barn.

All hell breaks loose after that.

The group runs after Shane. They are shouting at him to stop. Daryl and I decide to follow them awkwardly. The farm doesn't feel safe as before. All that security feeling left us all the moment Glenn talked.

Shane approaches the doors. The barn doors are shaking violently because of the noise. Is there a whole herd in there? Looks like there might be at least 15 walkers, maybe more...

"Oh my god, how many are there?" Lori asks.

"About a dozen maybe. They're wandering about like in a horror show in there" Glenn replies as he eyes the barn nervously.

You cannot tell me you're alright with this" Shane tells Rick.

"No, I'm not but we're guests here! This isn't our land" Rick answers angrily.

"This isn't right man!" Shane shouts as we all watch in horror how the walkers try to reach us.

Im feeling anxious. If it were on us then we would just shoot them all inside the barn. We hate walkers. They've made out lives more miserable than they already were, but its not on us, it's Hershel's place.

"Lower your voice!" Lori says eyeing Shane.

"We can't just sweep this under the rug" Andrea joins the conversation making some people nod. I see my brother just standing besides me, his jaw tight meaning he's absolutely not happy with Shane's actions, he's just paying close attention to everything they say.

"We've gotta go in there, we gotta make things right or we gotta leave right now. We've been talking about Fort Benning for a long time" Shane points at the barn. Looks like he'll lose it soon.

"We can't go!" Rick tells him with an angry, desperate tone.

"Why Rick, why?"

"Because my daughter is still out there" Carol says stepping into the conversation. Shane snorts and shakes his head.

"Okay I think it's time that we all try to consider the other possibility.."

"Shane we're not leaving Sophia behind" Rick interrupts him.

Daryl says"I'm close to finding this girl I only just found her doll a few days ago."

"You found her doll Daryl, that's what you did, you found a doll." Shane makes fun of Daryl making me angry as well. I hate how he feels he can boss everyone around.

"Bullshit! You don't know what the hell you're talking about" Daryl tells him losing it again. He approaches Shane. By the look in his eyes it'll only take one more sentence to make him snap.

"You know it needs to be said Daryl, I'm the first to point it out.." Shane answers.

I try to stop him knowing what he'll say. I know Daryl is still hurt so I can't allow them to fight. My brother is still hurt, Shane would kill him. "Shane, just shut up!"

"Let me tell you something else man" he teases Daryl, ignoring me. "if she was still alive out there and saw you coming all methed out with your bowie knife and geek ears around your neck she'd run in the other direction!"

"Shut up!" Daryl growls launching his fist to Shane's jaw.

They start fighting, beating each other. Shane holds Daryl, pressing his whole fist on his wound and pressing hard. Daryl screams in pain.

Rick pulls Shane away and Lori places her hands on his chest to stop him from running to Daryl again.

Shane seems to enjoy how easy it is to make Daryl snap.

I place myself like Lori on my brothers front while T-Dog stays alert behind him

"Im going to stomp your ass!" He roars.

"Oh yeah?" Shane replies "come at me, Robin Hood."

"Enough!" Rick shouts.

"Keep your hands off me!" Shane pushes Rick and walks away.

"Just let me talk to Herschel."Rick says trying to calm everyone. "Let me figure it out. He sees those things in there as people...Sick people. His wife, his stepson." he says. Everyone looks at him.

We can still hear loud and angry moans coming from inside and all that keeps the walkers in is an iron chain and wooden doors.

"I'll go and try to talk to him. Daryl, Mac, you keep watch. The rest of you go back to camp."

Daryl nods angrily. I just look at Rick as they walk away. Then follow my brother as he says one simple "move."


	13. Lost and found

Daryl asks me if I want to go with him. He says that he is going to look for Sophia.

He says Shane, nor Rick will tell him what to do.

I nod. I wont let him go alone.

He throws a saddle on a bench grunting in pain once again. Shane really fucked him more than he already was, but he just wont let me help him, so I just hold the two horses.

"Are you sure you don't need help?"

"Pretty damn sure" he says swallowing hard and breathing heavily "Apart from the fucking stitches pulling and the burning feeling that asshole caused, I'm good."

When Im about to say something Carol's voice catches our attention.

"You can't."she tells my brother "just look at you"

He stumbles away.

"'m fine" he growls while I sort the headstalls.

I think she hates how she's coming after him all the time. As if I didn't cause him enough trouble.

"Herschel said you need to heal."

"Yeah, I don't care" he murmurs.

I look at them while petting the horse's nose. The animal bumps his head against my hip. I smile and pet him between the eyes.

Looks like Daryl want Carol to leave. I just wonder why...

"Well I do. Rick's going out later to follow the trail" she says. Daryl snorts and looks at me.

"Yeah well, I ain't gonna sit around and do nothing."

"No, you're gonna go out there and get yourself and your sister hurt."

My brother rolls his eyes.

"Im fine. And she'll be ok. I'll take care of her." he says shaking his head.

"We don't know if we're gonna find her, Daryl" both of us stop what were doing and look at her in surprise.

"We don't" she repeats once more.

"How can you say that?" I ask. Both of us looking at her in disbelief.

"I don't" she continues. A tear rolling down her cheek.

Daryl clenches his fists.

I cant believe what she just said. She's her mother! How could she just give up of Sophia.

"I can't lose you both too" She says

I am more confused now. And shocked.

Did she just said she cares about us?

Daryl walks past her. He looks like he's trying to calm down but he's so angry that he grabs the saddle and throws it all the way across the stable.

A burning sharp pain makes him wince.

Looks like his wound got too strained because of his abrupt movement and the weight of the saddle, but when Carol runs for him and asks him if he's alright, he explodes again.

"Leave me be! Stupid bitch" he shouts and walks away. I think He needs space.

Carol looks down, tears running down her cheeks. I put the horses back in their places and walk next to her.

"Carol?"

"I just want Sophia back" she whispers "but I can't allow myself putting you in risk"

I nod. " I'll go talk to him. He just needs time"

"I'm sorry"

"Don't be. I am shocked too. No one has ever cared for us... Except for Merle." I smile when I remember him. I miss his jokes. "We'll get used to it. We'll find Sophia"

Carol nods and walks away. I walk back to camp to let Daryl alone for a moment. He needs it, so I guess I'll talk to him later.

* * *

Daryl sitting on a landing stage in the woods near the farm.

I know he's upset, I've known him since... Before I could remember.

I approach him slowly watching my own steps to not bother him.

Daryl moves his bare feet in the water gently watching the small waves he's causing.

He's obviously lost in thoughts.

He looks upset but calm at the same time, it's almost weird to see him like this. Its been so long since I saw him this relaxed. He looks like an innocent kid.

Out of my two siblings he's always been the most aggressive one, the guardian dog that just looks at everyone and waits for the moment to attack, the one that's always quiet, unlike Merle, who's most of the time bullying others and making fun of everything, unless he's bossing you around or hating people around him.

Merle's an ugly ass ape.

Daryl is just... Different. he's the one who takes more time to consider options and help others. The loyal one. He would do anything to help you if he thinks you're worth it.

Sometimes I even think he has more feelings than I do.

"I hate when you spy on me. And you know it." Daryl growls pulling me back to reality.

I walk closer, sitting next to him.

"I don't spy on you, I take care of you. And you hate everything about everyone around here, dear brother." Daryl snorts "aren't we going to look for Sophia?"

"Nah" he replies "And looks like Carol ain't interested in her anymore, so there's no point in wastin our time any longer on this stupid search."

"Alright. so, What now?"

Daryl turns his head to look at me. He stares at me for a second as if thinking what to do until his expression changes completely when his eyes looked a little to the right.

"What?" I ask looking behind me as he pulls his legs out of the water to run in the direction where he saw something. "What is it?" I ask again. I cant see anything because his back is blocking the view of what he's doing.

When he turns around he has a cherokee rose in his hand. I don't know what the hell is going on.

Daryl tells me to hold it and kneels down to put his boots back on.

"Daryl, what the fuck?!"

"get back to the farm and get the horses ready."

"What?" My face revealing pure confusion when he takes the flower away from me again.

"Just do it! She ain't lost! We will find her... And Merle." He says looking to me with a serious expression.

My eyes light up at the last two words. We're getting Merle back?

I smile nodding once and run to the farm to do what he said.

* * *

"You done?" Daryl asks me when he entered the stables.

I am standing there with two horses, turn around and nod.

"Aye" I say climbing on to the only white horse I saw there. I think its the one that looks better out of the 4 horses there.

For Daryl I took one randomly, but made sure it wasn't Nelly.

"Theres only one simple little detail."

"What is it?" Daryl asks absently as he climbs on his horse.

"I've never been on a horse before." He chuckles "I don't even know how I climbed without help."

"Just don't pull it to hard and you'll be fine. Try to follow me"

"Ok" I tell him. And we head out.

We're deep inside the woods when he asks. "How could you even prepare the reins if you were never on a horse before?"

"Animal planet"

"You learned on animal planet."

"No. I just saw a guy there doing some of it. Figured how to do the rest." He nods.

Back in the day, Merle had been the one giving both of us shit, we had to do what Merle said. Daryl has always been more like the 'doer' type, not the 'planner' type. Now it is Daryl who is bossing me around. It was strangely new sometimes, but in a good way.

Honestly I have no idea where we're actually going, and since I have nothing else to do but look out for Sophia and walkers, Im kind of getting bored.

"Can I ask you something?" I ask after a while and make the horse walk next to Daryl.

"What?" Daryl murmurs without looking at me.

"Why is Sophia so important for you?"

"Cos she's lost."

"But why would you look for a kid that ain't yours?"

"You are looking for her too."

"Cause if it was me, I would be terrified. Maybe being alone out there is not that bad, but being alone out there with walkers all around you...

Daryl turns his head to keep an eye on the surroundings to their left.

"Besides, she's Carol's daughter. Carol is cool."

My brother keeps quiet for a while and just looks at me. I sigh.

Maybe talking about Carol is not convenient now.

Ill ask something else.

"Do you think we're going to find him?"

Daryl snorted again. Thats a good sign, it means his not pissed.

"Merle? I'm not sure. Maybe at some point, but know for sure he ain't dead."

We ride on for hours until the nearest town.

We've encountered some walkers, not much though. The only thing that keeps me worried is that a herd could appear any second.

Daryl seems to think the same. He says its enough for today and that we should get back. We're so far north that we can actually feel the wind a little colder than in the farm.

I agree with him and turn my horse around to follow him back to the farm but stop when I look at the road in front of us.

"Look at those motherfuckers over there" I whisper and point at a small herd of walkers making its way down the road. "Weren't those the ones we saw by the creek?"

Daryl frowns looking at them. "Maybe. They're all so stupid, I don't know if I've seen a specific one before. I don't think they're following us though. They wont cause trouble as long as they keep walking in that direction."

I nod. They're walking away from the farm.

It looks so grotesque. They have no brain at all, no control over their bodies, and yet they seem so determined to get what they want.

Us.

"Come on, let's go" Daryl says and we keep going

When were back to camp everyone stares at us as if we're strangers.

Rick comes to us looking absolutely angry and after a long lecture about the group's rules and that we're not supposed to risk more lives than needed, he walks away.

We walk to the camping chairs close to the campfire and sit with the others. I stretch my body while Daryl grabs something to eat.

"I got you this back in town" I tell him looking in my bag and taking out a pack of cigarettes. Daryl snorts.

"Yeah, you better give me this shit. Don't want you smoking anytime soon"

Shane made fun of him once more by saying "sorry man. I just gave her permission to try marijuana yesterday."

I don't want him to het me in trouble.

Daryl and I look at him. A pissed "Fuck you!" Comes out of both us making the rest of the group uncomfortable.

* * *

I don't know what time it is, but I know its morning because of the cold weather around us and the little light that comes from the outside. I think its like 7 AM. Too early...

I feel Daryl moving by my side.

I shift a little and try to sleep more when Daryl rolls completely putting all his weight on me.

Holy...

Fucking...

He's too heavy! I can't breathe.

"Move, you fucking cow!" I scream in pain kicking my brother away, waking him instantly and making him jump to the other side of the tent.

"The fuck is wrong with you?!" He asks confused and angry at the same time and looking around to make sure everything is ok.

"You're heavier than a whale!"

"What?!"

"You rolled on me! Fucking asshole!"

"I thought you were fucking dying!" I hear people outside laughing. I think they heard us fighting.

"Almost." I say looking at him. I see a red area on his belly. I look at it feeling awful for kicking him. I apologise.

He just takes a random shirt and puts it on saying "Lets go outside"

I stand up with him and follow his steps.

Everyone is outside doing their thing already.

Carol and Lori had spared some food for us so we sit a moment to eat and with that get ready for another day of hard shit in this hard world.

Daryl looks tired. I feel bad for kicking him, what if I really hurt him?

When Carol hands our food and walks away Glenn looks at Daryl with a silly smile on his face "oh, look at you. When's the wedding?" Daryl stops eating and looks at him with those scary blue eyes he has. I feel sorry for Glenn, lucky for him, Daryl is more interested on eating and turns back to his food.

I smile. My brother is sometimes like a caveman. The only thing that matters is food.

The sun is higher now. I watch how Daryl teaches the rest of the group how to skin a squirrel.

When he's done with the first one and is about to take another one Shane comes with the rifle bag looking even more angry than ever. What happened to him?

My brother turns his head and looks at the policeman like everyone else.

"What's all this?" I ask standing up and approach shane when he puts the bag in front of us. Daryl got up as well and frowned.

"You with me, guys?" Shane asks throwing our guns to us. Rick took them the other day so Hershel could feel more comfortable, all of them except for the crossbow for some reason.

Daryl and I look at each other frowning and follow Shane when he keeps walking

"Time to grow up!" Shane says

"I thought we couldn't carry guns" T-Dog tells him

"We can and we have to."

"Why?" Shane stops walking and looks at me.

"Because" he replies walking closer. " it's what we should have done since the beginning. You don't want Daryl to end up like Merle did, do you?"

"Hey! leave her alone!" Daryl says pushing him back

Shane stops walking and looks at them all.

"Look, it was one thing sitting around here picking daisies when we thought this place was supposed to be safe. But now we know it ain't"

"Can you stop?"Lori asks looking scared. Maggie comes stepping in the conversation by walking closer to the policeman.

"You do this, you hand out these guns, my dad will make you leave tonight." She says with a serious tone

Shane insists "We ain't going anywhere, okay?" Rick's "brother" replies grabbing his own gun and then kneeling besides Carl.

"Herschel, he's just gotta understand. Okay? He...Well, he's gonna have to. Now we need to find Sophia. Am I right?" The kid nods scared.

I don't get it. Everything was so peaceful a moment ago. Why is Shane doing this?

We watch confused and nervous how he puts a gun in Carl's hand while saying "You take it, Carl, and you keep your mother safe. You do whatever it takes, you know how."

"Rick said no guns. This is not your call, this is not your decision to make."Lori says placing herself between her son and 'inShane' dude

"Ohhh shit. Can you see that?" T-Dog says interrupting them.

We turn our heads to see what was going on. There are five people walking towards us in the woods. We watch clearly and in silence how they come out of the woods near the barn.

Lori gasps, Shane smiles and Daryl growls when we notice it is Rick guiding walkers with dog pound sticks with Hershel and Jimmy.

I frown at the scene. "What the fuck?"

What the hell is he doing?

Shane starts running and after a moment of hesitation everybody follows.

"Shane wait!" Glenn shouts after him. Its no use, he wont listen.

"What the hell are you doing?" Shane yells at Rick as soon as they reach the barn.

Hey psycho, That was my though.

"back off!" Rick said but Shane ignores him.

"Why do you people have guns?" Hershel asks confused when Daryl and I point our guns to the walkers.

We wont shoot yet. At least not me, I'm here in case the walkers try something stupid.

Rick and Shane keep arguing. Glenn and Lori try to convince us to put our guns down.

We wont. Not unless the walkers are gone. I see how Its getting harder and harder for Rick to hold the walker.

"Are you kidding me? You see what they're holding on to?!" Shane shouts pointing at Rick and the blonde kid. I hate to think like this, but I think he's right in some way. We can't leave with walkers like neighbours. I'm getting tired of not doing nothing about it.

Am I getting crazy like Shane?

"I see who I'm holding onto!" Herschel yells

"You're holding onto monsters." I respond calmly. Rick looks at me surprised while I talk "Just fucking look at 'em! Your wife is dead, your neighbours are dead, they're all dead. You just have to face it."

Daryl looks at me like thinking about it. He hesitates for a moment before looking at Rick and saying "You're putting us all in danger"

"Just let us do this and then we can talk" the leader says. Daryl nods slightly but Shane explodes

"What is there to talk about, Rick? Dixon just said it! These things ain't sick! They're not people! They're dead! And they can't feel nothing because you know what they do? They kill! These things right here!" He points at the walkers, who are trying to get to him and bite him. Then he keeps going and looking at us as he talks again"They're the things that killed Amy! They killed Otis! They killed Merle."

I freeze at the mention of my brothers name. For a moment I loose myself in deep anger. Everything around me disappears. Everything is quiet in my mind. My brain locks itself in those three words.

They killed Merle.

I load my gun. I want to kill this motherfucker.

I hear Daryl's voice in the distance.

"Mac! " He shouts "Mac, listen to me!", but his voice seems so far. I cant even respond until he shouts harder bringing me back to reality. "Mac! For fuck's sake, look at me!" I look at him startled "Don't lose your shit now! He's not dead, alright?! Don't listen to him! He's not dead!" I hear Daryl growl angrily.

I blink a few times and nod tightening my jaw.

Merle ain't dead. We'll find him. He'll come back.

"They're gonna kill us all if you don't take care of this!" Shane keeps yelling and walking around.

"Shane, shut up!" Rick replies trying to keep holding the undead

"Hey Herschel man, let me ask you me this, could a living breathing person walk away from this?" Shane grabs his gun. He pulls the trigger three times hitting the undead girl that's being held by Hershel

"Stop it!" Rick growls

"I hit it in the chest! Thats its heart, its lungs! Could someone who's alive just take that? why is it still coming?"

"Shane, enough!" Rick demands and his friend walks up to the creature.

"Yeah man, that is enough."

He ends by putting the gun on the walker's head and pulling the trigger.

The girl falls on the ground and Hershel lets the stick go with it. He may be in even more shock than any of us. The rest of the group gasps or cover their mouths.

I see the walker and put my gun down since there's nothing to shoot at anymore.

I remember when I trusted Shane. He used to be so different.

He used to make good decisions for us. Now Hershel will kick us all out because of him.

I don't know why I feel bad. They're dead already... But... This is just so wrong...

"Enough, risking our lives for a little girl who's gone!"

Wait, what? She's not gone, I just have to look deeper into the woods, right?

"Enough living next to a barn full of things that're trying to kill us! Enough!"

Rick seems to be too shocked and clueless. He looks at me, then at Daryl and then at Shane.

"If you want to survive, you've got to fight for it! And I'm talking about fighting right here! Right now!"

Shane opens the barn.

The walkers start walking towards us.

Rick's anger makes him look like he's about to explode. He yells at Hershel, telling him to hold the walker he's holding onto so he can stop Shane, but he wont listen. He's kneeling next to the corpse of the dead girl he held a moment ago.

Daryl shoots the walker that is now trying to get Rick so he's out of danger.

All of the group members line up next to us to kill the dozens of walkers coming from the barn.

I hear Carl crying again and Lori walking back.

I move over to them and shoot the nearby walkers to protect them.

It's actually a creepy thing. Showing no emotions at all. No fear, no mercy. Just killing.

Everything that comes out of the barn. Cold blood and shit.

Its like being one of them...

Daryl looks at me and then starts shooting. Should I be worried about his thought towards me?

We don't stop until we see there are no walkers coming.

I finally look at Daryl. He shakes his head.

I know what that look means. I put my beretta in the holster around my leg.

"you ok?" I ask Lori and Carl. They seem to be in shock.

Lori nods. I look back to the walkers with a blank expression.

Its actually weird how I dont feel bad for them... Anyways, it all changes when we hear new groans.

One last walker comes out of the barn causing everyone's face to fall.

"Sofia" I whisper.

She has a bite on her shoulder, right where everyone can see it.

Not you! It can't be!

I feel a tear coming out of one of my eyes when she walks closer to us.

Shit, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I should have tried harder.

You were supposed to be alive. We were supposed to find you!

I hear Carol crying behind me and look at her for a second to see Daryl letting go of his gun when she comes running. He pins her down holding her back as she cries and sobs her daughter's name.

I look back to where sophia is.

She looks disoriented. She's not even trying to bite anyone until Rick walks closer to her.

She growls one more time when he pulls his Python out to her head.

I look away and cry silently, feeling guilty for not finding her before it was too late.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath regretting killing the other walkers.

A shot rings loud and strong.

We found her.

Sophia is dead.


	14. Broken

Push, lift, restart. Push, lift, restart. Push, push harder, lift, restart.

Daryl and I are digging holes to bury the people we shot...

Sophia included...

Daryl looks pissed. He growls every time he digs.

I'm too weak for this. All this pushing is making my arms hurt, but I wont stop. I need to do this.

I clean the sweat on my forehead. I lift my shirt a bit to see why I'm in so much pain.

There's a dark bruise on my left side.

Even the fresh scar I have looks red.

I sniff and look at Daryl as I let go of my shirt when he growls louder than usual.

I hope he didn't notice it. I dont want to give him more trouble

Theres a small blood river flowing down his left leg from his hip. His stitches must've overstretched.

I call his name but theres no answer. He keeps digging angrily. He insisted on burying Sophia himself so who am I to stop him?

"Brother." He puts his hand on his blood-soaked hip and turns to face me "You're bleeding. You need to rest."

"Pussy"

"What the fuck did you just say to me?!" I hate when he calls me that!

"Not you. Resting. It is for pussies. I ain't a pussy"

"You're anything you want to call yourself, thats for sure, but you're not a pussy. You need to rest." I say. He looks so tired, so angry, in pain, but most of all, sad.

I know he's feeling guilty for not finding Sophia. I am too.

I simply hate seeing him like that.

Daryl looks down and takes a deep breath. "Almost done." He turns and keeps digging.

I move to where he is and help him finish the hole.

* * *

We stand by the graves. Watching. Leaving the corpses of what once were human beings behind. Carol couldn't stand here for long. She's in the RV crying right now.

Daryl walks away pissed.

I apologise silently eyeing Sophia's grave. I turn to look at my brother's back as he walks away.

Should I follow him?

I look down again. Maybe Daryl wants to be alone for a while, I wont push him.

I feel tired. Not physically though.

Tired of being scared, tired running away, tired of crying, tired of loosing people.

I'm tired of caring if things happen to the rest of the group.

I wish I could just ignore everyone for a while. Be just Merle, Daryl and me.

I wish I never told them to join the group. Merle would still be here, Daryl wouldn't be on a roller coaster full of confusing emotions and I wouldn't feeling like shit.

The group walks back to camp. I watch the graves a little longer.

* * *

I hear something, is it a fight?

I stand up as soon an I realise who's voice is it. Shane and Daryl are close to each other. Both are fighting verbally. I look at them from my spot.

They wont stop until someone's dead, will they?

Thats what Shane wants. I can see it in his eyes.

I am mad at him. If something happens to Daryl I'll kill that fucker with my bare hands.

No one else seems to notice the fight until Daryl beats Shane.

Shane responds and things go south. I start running to where they are.

The rest of the group is coming after me. They're all the way back in camp and they could still hear them? Wow.

Once again Shane is winning. He ends up on top of Daryl again, except this time he's not holding him back. He wraps his hands around Daryl's neck.

Shane is choking my brother.

I am scared. He's going to kill him!

Daryl fights as hard as he can. He grabs Shane's shoulders, arms, tries to punch, tries to kick.

"Shane stop!" Rick shouts behind me. I see Daryl's eyes looking at me.

They look scared too. Ive never seen that look on my brother's eyes. They also look more and more lifeless with each passing second.

He takes Shane's wrists and just stops fighting.

No, don't give up, stupid!

I am so angry now. I jump on Shane's back. I wrap my legs around his waist. I put one of my arms around his neck and hold it with the other one on the back of his head just like one of Merle's friends taught me once.

I squeeze my arms by pulling towards myself as hard as I can. Shane stands up.

Shane stumbles back trying to punch me.

He let go of my brother to try to take me down. Good.

Daryl rolls to his side coughing and gasping for air.

Shane growls. He takes my hair hard and pulls even harder. I scream in pain and let him go.

He throws me to the ground.

My ribs crack again the moment I hit the ground. I could actually hear them snap but I don't have time to feel pain.

Everything is happening so fast.

I look up to see how he lifts his fist to beat me.

I cant move. I can't even breathe. I cough.

Daryl crawls weakly to where I am. He looks desperate and in pain.

I stop coughing.

I close my eyes hard waiting for Shane's fist. I'm ready for it.

I wait. I am expecting it...

...but it never happens.

I open my eyes and see Rick holding his Python just like he did to my brother when he tried to kill Jim. I look at him in surprise.

We're all panting. My side starts to burn.

Shit, not again!

Shane puts his hands up in an 'I surrender' sign.

Rick puts the gun down, Shane growls and walks away.

At least its not as bad as last time. At least I can move.

Daryl stands up slowly. He has a blackeye.

He helps me up and looks at Rick angrily. My body starts shaking in pain.

I try to hold it.

Rick tells Glenn to ask Maggie to check on us. Glenn nods and walks back to the farmhouse.

The remaining people is quiet. They look at us as we slowly walk away.

I could hear Rick curse.

We walk back to our tent.

* * *

Daryl told me that we're moving.

Well, he really didn't say 'moving' but thats what we're gonna do, at least to the other side of the farm. He says the group is broken.

I agree, theres been a lot of shit going on between Rick and Shane lately and I think it has to do with Lori.

I walk out to look for Maggie. Maybe Hershel is too angry but I need someone to check on Daryl's injuries and maybe mine too... To keep an eye on that bruise that came out of nowhere. Not to mention the terrible pain I've been feeling since the adrenaline in my body faded.

"Everything alright?" I look back to see who's calling me. It is Rick.

"Considering that Shane almost killed Daryl and probably me if you hadn't stopped him" I say a little pissed. "Yeah, we'll live."

"I'm sorry. I'll try to keep an eye on him."

"Yeah, you do that." I look back at some of the packed stuff ready to move far away from the rest of the group and mumble "I don't think that'll be necessary, though"

Rick looks at the stuff surprised. He eyes everything carefully to look back at me later. "You're leaving?!"

"If you mean to the other side of the farm, yes. We need to stay away for a bit and let your group fix some problems first. By the way Shane is one of them"

"Our group." He says shocked "you are part of it. Its our group."

"Well, I find it funny. Our group seems to be trying to kill we three! Maybe already succeeded with one of us." Rick shakes his head.

"I'm sorry."

"Yeah, just keep them away from my brother for a while and no one will be hurt." I take a deep painful breath "anyway... Have you seen Maggie? I need someone to redo Daryl's stitches and check on some stuff for me."

"I just talked to her." He says putting his hands on his hips, just like a sheriff. "I came to see if you or Daryl could help us find Hershel. Someone needs to watch for that nasty bruise you got there and re-stitch Daryl." He saw it? It must have happened when Shane pulled me away from him. And to make it better..

"Hershel is missing?"

"He went out. Probably have a drink or two. Maybe more. We need to find him before anything happens to him. To check on you guys and Lori."

"Lori?"

"She's pregnant." I think of it for a few seconds. I knew she was pregnant, but...

"I know."

"You do?"

"Since the beginning. Maybe I should've told you."

"You did good..." Silence. Then I talk again

"She told you?"

He shakes his head "I found a few boxes of abortion pills in our tent"

What the fuck?! "Abortion pills?"

"She says she threw 'em up, but I'm still a bit worried. Thats why I need Hershel."

I look down thinking about it. To be honest I wouldn't risk my life for Lori Grimes, but Rick... He's a good man. I think he would risk it for me or my brothers.

"I'll go with you."

"Daryl would be ok with it?"

"He's injured and mad like a cow. He wont agree." I say laughing slightly. Rick snorts. "I'll go tell him" I lie.

"Thank you."

I nod. Daryl wont need to know. I mean, we'll just get Hershel and be back.

I don't like lying, but if I tell him I'll make him more angry, so yeah, he doesn't need to know.

I'll go find the old man and be back before he notices.

What could possibly go wrong?

I smile to myself. I love fucking sarcasm.

* * *

"Please keep an eye on Rick" Lori says when I walk to where the Sheriff is. Shes been acting weird since she's pregnant. I cant stand her. She's just trying to justify Shane and look like she cares about Rick. THATS FUCKING BULLSHIT!

"He's a grown man, I think he can do that himself"

"Just keep him safe."

"What can I do about it? This place is going to hell"

"Yeah, he's trying hard to prevent that." I roll my eyes.

"He won't be able to." I tell her trying to not lose it.

"Shane is working on it too."Everything Shane did or will do is her fault!

"Shane? Shane is one of the main problems! There are people in this group who think that what Shane did was justified. As long as he's around things will keep going wrong."

"I know you two can't stand him" she insists

"No I can't anymore. Maybe before, but now he tried to kill my brother, broke my goddamn ribs again and caused Rick an unnecessary problem with Hershel"

"but he did something that needed to be done."

"He's dangerous, Lori! You cant keep him and Rick in one shared space!"

"I know he's a hothead."

"No." I say firmly "he's _dangerous_ , Do you really think Otis sacrificed himself for a random kid just because? Or for a Man he didn't even know?"

"Otis was killed by walkers."

"For fucks sake! He knew how to handle walkers. Otis was the one who was putting them in the barn! You need to think about it!"

"What are you saying?" She asks looking shocked and scared. I stop walking and turn to face her. "Shane killed him! Open your eyes, Lori! He killed Otis, he was about to kill Daryl, And he will kill whoever the fuck he wants to kill!"

"He's not a murderer."

"And why would he kill somebody who's trying to help?"

"There needs to be an explanation! Maybe he was pinned down. He said it." She says desperate. I'm getting tired of this. I'll talk and go, either she understands or not.

"I knew guys like him thanks to Merle. Believe it or not, a lot of them and sooner or later, he's gonna kill somebody else. Cold blood. He wont care if its good or bad. He will do it again." She stares at me with fear in her eyes. She opens her mouth as if she's going to say something, but closes it again. "I'll stick to Rick. Don't worry about him. Just keep an eye on your boyfriend"

I turn and walk to where Rick and Glenn are waiting for me. I get on the car and head with them to find Hershel.


	15. Others

Its Getting dark out here. We shouldn't be out here now, but we need to find the bar.

Yes, Hershel decided to get drunk in the middle of nowhere with walkers all around us so now we're looking for him.

My whole torso hurts...Maybe I should've told Daryl I was coming...

"There!" Glenn says " thats the place!" He runs to it. Rick and I follow and stop by the door.

"Are you sure its here?" Rick asks hesitantly before opening the doors.

"Pretty sure"

Rick opens the doors calling the old man's name and we enter quietly.

There he is. Sitting in the bar.

"Who's with you?" He asks without turning. I close the doors behind us. Daryl taught me that when we were looking for Sophia, it may be locking yourself in, but there are more walkers outside than inside. The place is a lot darker than the outside. Theres no light but the moon shining through the old windows.

"Glenn." Rick replies "Mac. Just the three of us."

"Maggie sent the boy?"

"No."Rick says as we walk closer "He volunteered."

"He's good like that."

"How many have you had?" Rick asks him looking at the bottles around the old man getting closer to him. Glenn and I position ourselves at each side of the place to make sure its safe.

"Not enough."

"Let's finish this up back at home." He takes the bottle but Hershel stops him.

"They'll be fine without me."

"Beth collapsed, is in some sort of state. Must be in shock. I think you are too."

"Maggie's with her?"

"Yeah, but Beth needs you."

"What could I do? She needs her mother." He drinks more and keeps going "Or rather to mourn like she should've done weeks ago."

"You thought there was a cure. Can't blame yourself for holding out for hope."

"Hope? When I first saw you running across my field with your boy in your arms, I had little hope he would survive."

"But he did." Rick says

"Even though we lost Otis." Hershel drinks again "Your man Shane made it back and we saved your boy. That was the miracle that proved to me miracles do exist."

"Otis was used as bait." I tell him. I may be cold, but there's nothing to hide anymore.

"I know. I was a fool and you people saw that." Hershel drinks once more. "My daughters deserve better than that"

I lean on the wall to hide the pain by the pressure in my chest.

"So what do we do?" Glenn asks "Just wait for him to pass out?"

"Just go." Hershel says and Glenn shakes his head.

"I promised Maggie I'd bring you home safe."

"Like you promised that little girl?" Sophia... I look down.

Rick notices my reaction and changes the topic. "So what's your plan? Finish that bottle? Drink yourself to death and leave your girls alone?"

"Stop telling me how to care for my family, my farm!" Now Hershel looks angry. Mood shifts! Wow! Alcohol things! "You people are like a plague! I do the Christian thing, give you shelter, and you destroy it all! The world was already in bad shape when we met.

And you take no responsibility! You're supposed to be their leader!"

"Well, I'm here now, aren't I?" Rick responds

"Yes, you are."

"Then come on. Your girls need you now more than ever."

"I didn't want to believe you." Hershel cries "You told me there was no cure, that these people were dead, not sick. I chose not to believe that. But when Shane shot Lou in the chest and she just kept coming, that's when I knew what an ass I'd been, that Annette had been dead long ago and I was feeding a rotten corpse! That's when I knew there was no hope." He turns to where I am and says "And when that little girl came out of the barn, the look on you and your brother's face... I believed what you said that day in the porch. Theres no hope."

"i said theres no cure." I answer. "you make the hope."

"You ready?" Rick asks. Hershel nods and stands up.

"Yeah."

When we start heading outside the door suddenly opens.

Two men look at us from there. We freeze.

* * *

"I'm Dave." The guy says "That scrawny-looking douche bag there is Tony."

"Eat me, Dave." The other guy laughs

"Hey, maybe someday I will."

"We met on I-95 coming out of Philly. Damn shit-show that was." We look at each other. Rick nods to Glenn. Glenn says

"I'm Glenn. It's nice to meet some new people."

"Rick Grimes."

Both walk to where Hershel was sitting. We move around them to avoid getting closer. Dave takes Hershel's bottle and drinks a little. He looks at Hershel with a smile.

"How about you, pal? Have one?"

He shakes his head "I just quit."

"You've got a unique sense of timing, my friend." Dave laughs

"His name's Hershel." Rick says. "He lost people today, a lot of them."

"I'm truly sorry to hear that" Tony replies. Then looks at us carefully. "What about the precious little one?"

"Mac." I say nervously standing besides Rick.

"Well" Dave smiles raising the bottle "To better days and new friends." He drinks "And to our dead may they be in a better place."

I look at them silently then I poke Rick slightly when I see a gun in Dave's hands.

Rick looks at it. Dave notices and smiles putting it on the bar next to his bottle.

"Not bad, huh? I got it off a cop."

"I'm a cop."

"This one was already dead. Way back in Philadelphia"

"You fellas are a long way from Philadelphia."

"It feels like we're a long way from anywhere." Tony says

"Well, what drove you South?" Rick asks. Dave walks and sits on a chair nearby.

"Well, I can tell you it wasn't the weather. I must've dropped 30 lbs. In sweat alone down here.." Tony laughs. The funny thing is that he really is fat! I snort.

"You wish." Dave says. "I heard there might be some kind of refugee camp, but the roads were so jammed, we never even got decided to get off the highways, into the sticks, keep hauling ass."

Tony keeps going "Every group we came across had a new rumor about a way out of this thing. One guy told us there was the coast guard sitting in the Gulf, sending ferries to the islands. The latest was a rail yard in Montgomery running trains to the middle of the country. Kansas, Nebraska."

"Nebraska?" Glenn asks interested.

"Yeah" Dave says proudly "Low population, lots of guns."

"Kinda makes sense." Hershel says dryly.

"Ever been to Nebraska, kid?" Dave asks me.

"Never been out of Georgia."

"Damn Shame. Well, How about you guys?"

"Fort Benning, eventually." Rick says

"I hate to piss in your cornflakes, officer, but We ran across a grunt who was stationed at Benning. He said the place was overrun by lamebrains."

"Wait, fort Benning is gone?" Glenn asks surprised. "Are you for real?"

"Sadly, I am. Oddly, the truth is there is no way out of this mess. Just keep going from one pipe dream to the next, praying one of these mindless freaks doesn't grab a hold of you when you sleep...

"If you sleep." Tony leans on the wall

"Yeah, it doesn't look like you guys are hanging your hats holed up somewhere else?"

"Not really."

"That your car out front?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"We're living in ours. That one looks kinda empty, clean." Rick seems starting to get anxious "Where's all your gear? We're with a larger group out scouting, thought we could use a drink."

"A drink?"

"Well, we're thinking of setting up around here. Is it is it safe?" Dave says wth his face getting darker.

"It can be, although I have killed a couple of walkers around here." Rick replies.

"Walkers? That what you call them?"

"Yeah."

"That's good. I like that"

"I like that better than lamebrains." Tony laughs and moves to a corner. I can hear his zipper and then how he takes a piss on the wall. I make a face of disgust.

"So what so what, you guys set up on the outskirts or something? That new development? Trailer park or something? A farm?" Rick looks at them with no expression at all. I chew my lower lip anxiously. They smile and sing "'Old McDonald had a farm' you got a farm? 'E-I-e-I-o.'" Dave smiles "Is it safe? It's gotta be."

We're all quiet. Tony comes smiling. he walks to us and ask "You got food, water?" He pauses for a moment. He looks directly at me. It makes me uncomfortable. I feel Rick getting tense besides me. " You got ladies? Ain't had a piece of ass in weeks."

Rick puts his hand on my shoulder pushing me behind him. He puts his hand on his gun and stares at Tony.

"Listen, pardon my friend. City kids they got no tact." Dave makes his friend back up a little "No respect... So..."

"we've said enough." Rick says

"Well, hang on a second. This farm it sounds pretty sweet. Don't it sound sweet, Tony?"

"Yeah, real sweet."

"How about a little Southern hospitality? We got some buddies back at camp, been having a real hard time. I don't see why you can't make room for a few more. We can pool our resources, our manpower."

"Look, I'm sorry." Rick tells them firmly. "That's not an option."

"Doesn't sound like it'd be a problem."

"I'm sorry. We can't." Hershel says

Rick nods "We can't take in any more."

"I thought I thought we were friends."

"We got people we gotta look out for too. We don't know anything about you." Rick explains.

"No, that's true. You don't know anything about us."

"You don't know what we've had to go through out there, the things we've had to do." Tony says "I bet you've had to do some of those same things yourself."

" Damn right. 'Cause nobody's hands are clean in what's left of this world. Not even your kid's." Dave tells Rick nodding towards me. "We're all the same. So come on, let's let's take a nice friendly hayride to this farm and we'll get to know each other."

"Rick this is bullshit." I whisper. Rick nods slightly. Tony scares me, to be honest.

"Its not gonna happen"Rick says. Their smiles fading. They look at Rick with anger in their eyes.

"What?!" Tony shouts "I'll shoot you three assholes in the head and take your kid and your damn farm!" I gasp slightly backing up more behind Rick.

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa. it 's killing anybody." Dave laughs "Nobody's shooting anybody, Right, Rick? We're just friends having a drink. That's all.. Now, You gotta understand we can't stay out there. You know what it's like."

"Yeah, I do. But the farm is too crowded as is. I'm sorry. You'll have to keep looking."

"Keep looking.? Where do you suggest we do that?

"I don't know." Rick says. The whole conversation has been cold. And as a warning. But now... Its more serious than that...

Now Rick is even angry. I can see that. He says "I hear Nebraska's nice."

"Nebraska." Dave laughs. He sighs and looks a bit down. "This guy." He says

I see how he tries to take his gun. Glenn pulls me to him and without a warning there are gun shots.

I look up to see what happened. Dave and Tony are dead.

Hershel looks shocked.

* * *

"Woah..."I Say amazed

"Holy shit." Glenn looks at Rick

"You all right?" Rick asks in general

"Yeah."

"Hershel?"

"Let's head back." The old man says looking totally uncomfortable. We walk to the exit one more time

"Car!" Glenn says when we see lights outside.

"Get down!" The leader whispers pulling me down with him as he kneels to one side of the doors. I gasp. Shit, my ribs!

Glenn and Hershel do the same in the other side right across us.

The engine stops. We hear the doors opening and closing. We hear a male voice calling Dave. I look at the corpses behind us and wonder how many people is out there.

I try to concentrate on what they're saying and hope they don't come in here.

"I'm telling you, man. I heard shots!" A third voice joins the first two into the conversation.

I see a little hole in the door. I move to see through it but Rick stops me.

I look at him in the eye reassuring silently that I'll be ok. He lets me go so I can sneak through it.

I back up. The guy saw our car.

I turn to tell Rick what I saw when the guy says "its still warm."

"We gotta get out of here." Rick whispers.

"Great idea" Glenn whispers "how?"

"We can't just go out and kill them" Hershel adds

"Dave! Tony!" One man shouts

"Shut up," another one answers "You wanna attract 'em? Just stick close. We're gonna find 'em."

"Why not? They're just three, we're four. We don't even need guns!" I look at Glenn and chuckle.

"Wow, you're smart! No guns?" He frowns "Well, then you're three. I ain't kicking ass today."

"Why?!"

Rick lifts his head a bit to check on the guys outside.

"I had enough with Shane! Broke my fucking ribs this afternoon, remember?"

"Aren't you supposed to feel pain or something?" I lift my shirt a bit to show the dark bruise on my torso which looks nastier in the dark.

"I don't know, you tell me!" I answer sarcastically. To be honest, yes, it hurts a lot.

"Why are you here if you're hurt like that?" Hershel says angrily. Glenn looks at me surprised and decides to keep quiet.

"Came looking for you! Thanks for asking!"

"Enough!" Rick says looking at us.

He's about to say something but walker grunts stop him. We hear the people outside shooting.

* * *

We're been here for a few minutes. The guys went to look for their friends, which is dumb cause they're dead, and left another guy watching their stuff. I guess it is just in case we return to our car, which is not going to happen anytime soon if they still there.

We're in the same spots, only our positions changed. We're sitting now.

I am so bored and so in pain. I grunt softly as I shift a little in a failed attempt of ceasing it.

I'm starting to feel dizzy and tired. Hershel says I'm looking pale, and its just because of this fucking pain.

He seems to read my mind and knows what I'm dealing with.

I ignore him and try to think of something else.

"Why wont they leave?" Glenn whispers

"Would you?" Rick replies the same way.

"We can't sit here any longer." Hershel says. "We can't leave this kid untreated." I roll my eyes. Of course they can! They'll just have to deal with Daryl later.

"Lets head out the back and make a run to the car" Glenn suggests.

Pow! Gun shots! Looks like they're back.

They talk again but no one is interested on what they're saying until we hear the word 'bar'.

We look at each other and listen carefully. Their footsteps are getting closer until the door pushes a little bit.

Rick puts all his weight on it causing it to close on the guys.

Fuck...

"What?" One man wonders.

"Someone pushed it shut!" Next one says "There's someone in there!"

A third one joins the conversation as we hear how they back up slightly. "if someone's in there, we don't want no trouble. We're just looking for our friends."

Rick sighs as they keep going

"If something happened, tell us."

The first dude says "This place is crawling with corpses. If you can help us not get killed, I'd appreciate it." There's no answer from us. We look at each other in silence.

"I don't think someone's in there" guy two says. their steps sounding further now. They're leaving. Maybe

Rick tilts his head anxiously. Suddenly he shouts.

"They drew on us!" Footsteps stop completely I whisper.

"Shit."

"They're alive?" Someone asks from the outside.

"No."

The three men start arguing for a few more seconds. They're arguing about killing us, or letting us in peace but Rick stops them.

"Your friends drew on us! They gave us no choice!" He repeats. Theres no answer so he keeps going "I'm sure we've all lost enough people, done things we wish we didn't have to, but it's like that now. You know that! So let's just chalk this up to what it was Wrong place, wrong..."

Woah! They fired! Was that a shotgun?! Oh my God!

"Oh sh..."shit? Yes i thought that too "To the back! Get out of here! Go!"

I try to get up.

We run back and out of the bar. I grab my beretta tightly when we stop in the back alley.

We're panting. I close my eyes to concentrate on my own breath. I can't, it's impossible. I feel sleepy. Everything seems to fade slowly.

"Rick..." He looks at me. His face changes. He looks surprised and worried.

"shit..." I hear him whisper.

I cant even feel anything anymore. I catch bits and pieces every now and then.

Rick says "Help...put her...my shoulder."

I hear gunshots. Distant ones, just like the voices.

I feel so light. Like flying...I try to open my eyes and see Rick's full back. My arms hanging towards the street. He seems to be running.

My eyelids are heavy. I close my eyes again.

Loud screaming somewhere

What the fuck?!

The screaming continues but it gets further and further away until theres nothing anymore.

* * *

I take a deep breath and move.

"What happened?" I whisper without opening my eyes.

"You did stupid shit... again" Daryl says. Daryl?! I open my eyes startled and look around. I'm in our tent. I sit. Daryl's right outside in the small campfire away from the rest of the group. "Passed out. Rick carried you and brought you back." He finally stands and walks in. I look at him confused "Maggie did the bandage"

I put hand on my side and feel a tight bandage around me. "I'm sorry"

"Yeah you always are." He says angrily "You could've told me you were going with them."

I am ashamed. Was he worried?

Oh I bet he was! I bet he even looked for me!...

Or maybe he didn't.. Maybe he was to angry to do that...

After what felt like minutes of silence, Daryl makes me stand up and walk to the farm house.

He's so angry...

He needs violence to calm himself. Thats how he rolls.

Daryl opens the door for me.

It looks like a meeting. I even heard Rick and Shane arguing again on our way here.

Everyone is reunited.

"Isn't that the same as leaving him for the walkers?" Andrea is asking as we enter the farmhouse.

Him?

"He'll have a fighting chance." Rick says.

Who the hell is 'he'?

I see Carol looking at Daryl. By the look on my brother's eyes I know they had problems last night.

"Just gonna let him go? He knows where we are." Shane replies to Rick. Daryl grabs my shoulder and pulls me to the nearest window on the corner.

Wow, he's being rude...

"He was blindfolded the whole way here. He's not a threat."Rick keeps trying to convince others. I wonder why Daryl brought me here to talk about, or more like listen to the group argue about, some random guy. Who are they talking about?

"Not a threat. How many of them were there? You killed three of their men, you took one of them hostage!" Shane shouts "but they just ain't gonna come looking?"

"They left him for dead. No one is looking."

Them... Dave and Tony? they're dead... or is it someone from their group?

"We should still post a guard."

"He's out cold right now, will be for hours."

"You know what? I'm gonna go get him some flowers and candy. Look at this, folks. We back in fantasy land." Shane scoffs and tries to walk away before Hershel stops him.

"You know, we haven't even dealt with what you did at my barn yet." The old man stops him in an angry mood. Shane turns and looks at him. "Let me make this perfectly clear, once and for all. This is my farm. Now I wanted you gone. Rick talked me out of it, but that doesn't mean I have to like it, so do us both a favor keep your mouth shut."

Shane sighs walking out. He rubs his head with both hands as he walks away.

Everyone is quiet until Rick walks to Hershel. He tells him that nothing will happen today.

I wonder what all of this was about. Doing nothing about what? The guy they're talking about? who is he anyway?

Andrea follows Shane and everyone turns to leave.

Carol walks near us. She looks like she wants to talk to Daryl but he grabs my shoulder and pushes me out as fast as we came in.

"Hey!" I push him away. "I can walk by myself"

"Whatever" he says looking at me as we walk. "You're staying right where I can see you."

Bullshit! I'm not a baby!

"What the fuck?!" I say angrily.

Daryl pushes me again. "just shut up"

What the fuck is wrong with him?


	16. Dixon Butchers

**l usually don't post until the next chapter is Ready So I can wait for your Reviews, Read your suggestions and then edit.**

 **Honestly l wasn't gonna upload this yet since l haven't written the next one,a** **but I guess I can make an exception due to today's date.**

 **BONUS CHAPTER, EVERYONE!**

 **Happy Birthday Norman!**

* * *

Daryl is still angry. Yesterday we spent the rest of the day making arrows for the crossbow... Well, he did... I cleaned my guns and stood there since he wont let me go far for whatever reason...

He told me to join him in the barn when I'm done eating. I'm still in pain to be honest and cough once in a while, but I can handle it.

I honestly dont know if I want to know what he's up to since he's been quiet all morning. Thats never a good sign and thats the same reason why I should do what he said. I wonder what he's up to...

I walk closer to the barn and push the door open.

Daryl is there. He and Randall look at me surprised.

Both are panting and the guy is crying. He looks young. Not a teen, definitely, but younger than Daryl. He must be in his early twenties.

Daryl's fists are bloody. I frown at the scene and close the door behind me.

"H..hey! I know you!" Randall says "you were unconscious yesterday!" We look at him "you need to get me out of here. Your buddies are crazy! Specially this guy!"

I laugh nervously and try to not look surprised by this "Who says I ain't? 'This guy' is my brother after all"

"Oh come on! You cant be like him!"

"Who knows? Maybe thats my goal" Daryl looks at me raising en eyebrow.

"Man, what's the point in all this now, your people saved my ass! You took care of my wounds, why would you do that if you want t' kill me now?"

"Shut up!" My brother tells him

"Please, just let me go!"

"I said shut up!" Daryl roars and beats him.

"Please, I didn't do anything!" Randall cries and groans in pain.

"Yeah, I bet" Daryl says beating him again

"Tell him to stop! Please! Get him away!" Randall cries to me "he's crazy!"

"Oh, I know he's crazy as fuck! But I cant do nothing about it."

"Why?"

Daryl punches him again "Keep your trap shut!"

"What are you up to?" I ask Daryl calmly

"Rick wanted him to talk. We need to know what we're dealing with."

"Well... give him an opportunity to talk, then." Daryl growls rolling his eyes and turns to the sobbing guy on the floor. He waks around a bit thingking about it.

"Ok, then. Talk"

"I already told you!" The guy sobs

"You told me shit!"

Daryl lifts his fist to punch him again when he shouts "I barely knew those guys! I met them on the road!"

"How many in your group?" Daryl asks

Randall shakes his head and looks in my direction.

My brother looks at me. I roll my eyes and approach them. Daryl steps back so I can kneel next to the stranger.

"You wanted me to stop him. I did. Now you need to answer or he will continue to beat you. He asked how many people are in your group" I ask softly. Randall just keeps panting and groaning in pain.

"Fuck this" I Hear Daryl say. He wraps his arms around me and pulls me away, then he takes my knife

"No no no no no, come on man..." Randall starts. He looks at me finally "I'll talk! I'll talk!"

"Sorry" I mumble

I look how Daryl stabs the floor between the his legs and yells "HOW MANY?!"

"Thirty! Thirty guys!"

I always knew my brother did this sometimes after the outbreak, but Ive never seen him doing it. Now that I'm watching him I know he's capable of literally anything.

He's like a wild animal when he's into this

"Where?" He asks. Randall wont answer again. Daryl smirks. He takes the bandage on his leg asking again.

The guy shakes his head. "I don't know."

Daryl rips the bandage off his leg cutting the wound slowly with the knife. Randall screams "I don't know! I swear I don't know! We kept moving! Every night!"

"Planning on staying local?"

"I don't know. They left me behind." Randall cries as my brother keeps cutting his skin.

Daryl stops and looks at me. His eyes look so dark. I don't know if he's threatening me or he just looks like this now.

He stands and hands me the bloody knife. "All yours" I look at him in shock and take the knife.

"But..."

"Its time for you to learn something useful! Not the bullshitty drama in the group!"

"Daryl I..."

He looks at me again in a way he's never done it before. I'm afraid of him so I approach Randall kneeling where my brother had been.

I look back to where Daryl is. He nods towards the injured leg.

"I know youre not like him. Don't hurt me, please" Randall says

"Oh, so You want ME to cut your fucking leg off?!" Daryl asks him

"Hell no, man"

"Then stop whining and answer!" Randall breathes in deeply "Do it" my brother tells me

I insert the knife in the guy's leg and push hard making him bleed more.

I'm shaking. I've never hurt anyone like this before.

The guy yelps in pain "I'm trying to cooperate, man!"

"Start real slow at first"

Daryl tilts his head telling me to keep going. I pull slowly closer to me making the wound bigger.

Randall sobs, yelps, cries, and begs for us to stop.

"Just talk already." I whisper to him.

"Okay! Okay... They have weapons. Heavy stuff. Automatics.." He starts. Daryl tells me to stop. I freeze. "I didn't do anything!"

"Your people shot my people, they tried to take this farm. And you just went along for the ride? ARE YOU TRYING TO TELL ME YOU'RE INNOCENT?!" Daryl yells

"Yes!" The guy yelps.

Daryl nods to me. I grab the knife with both hands and pull hard and fast making him scream.

At first I was scared of doing this, but I dont know anymore. He's not one of us.

I pull the knife out of his leg and step back.

Randall talks before Daryl can protest.

"Oh thank god you stopped"

"You better start talking before he makes me go back to it." I tell him

"These people took me in. Not just guys, a whole group. Men and women" we listen to him standing side by side in front of him. "I thought I had a better chance with them, you know?"

"But... We go out, scavenge... Just the men. One night we... We found this little camp. A man and his two daughters. Teenagers. Like you" he nods to me. "Real young. Real cute" Daryl steps further looking at him with a threatening look. I feel disgusted. This guy is just like Tony. "Daddy had to watch while these guys... They didn't even kill him afterwards. They made him watch. And then just left him there."

It makes sense. Now I get why Tony asked if there were women here.

It gives me chills. I look at Daryl with a worried look. I dont feel afraid of hurting him anymore. This people are disgusting

Daryl has the right to beat the shit out of him. My brother stares at the man and growls softly. Almost a whisper

"Are you fucking telling me what I think?"

"But.. But I didn't touch those girls! I swear!"

"Are you fucking talking about rape?" Daryl asks louder.

"You gotta believe me, man! I didn't do anything to them! I'm not like that!"

"You fucking watched them rape those girls?! And you didn't do nothing about it!?"

"I was scared! they would've killed me!"

Daryl walks closer and starts beating him againletting all his anger out

* * *

I stand up slow and painfully. I clean push the hair away from my face with my bloody hands and walk to where Daryl is leaning on the wall. One hand holding the other one, both shaking and bloody.

"You done?" Daryl asks quietly. I nod and look down to my bloody knife. I am shaking too...I kept cutting Randall just like he told me. Not too deep, not too hard. He told me exactly where to cut and which parts of his leg to avoid to keep him from bleeding to death.I look at Daryl again. He seems a lot more relaxed.

"All done."

"You're a bitch." Randall says. He sobs from time to time.

"Hey!" Daryl yells pointing his finger to the prisoner. "You have something else to say!?" The guy looks away sniffing. He looks angry, in pain, confused, and so many other things. Even scared. But he just keeps quiet. "Good. Then shut the fuck up!"

I never thought I could be capable of doing something like this. Yes, I stole sometimes before the apocalypse. I robbed people to help Merle, even did more illegal shit from time to time, but I never tortured anyone... Guess there's always a first time for everything. The strangest thing is that I am completely comfortable with it. Maybe because I am mad at this dude, maybe I'm just a heartless bitch, but I changed my mind about him. He's not a good guy.

* * *

I put the knife on the table in front of everyone. Daryl throws the bandages to them, which land in the same spot. Both objects are still soaked on Randall's blood.

Rick looks up surprised. The rest of the group can't stop looking at all the blood. They stare at us and then the objects, and then back at us. Most of them are confused, except Rick and Shane.

"30 men, heavy artillery. They roll through here, our men are dead and our women are gonna wish they were." Daryl says. Rick looks at me like he's don't getting it. "They're not looking to make friends."

"How?" He asks

"Apparently, they go out, scavenge and whenever they meet other groups they torture and kill the men and rape the girls. Sick shit."

Some of the group gasp. Rick shakes his head.

"No, I get that but... What did you do to him?"

"Had a little chat."

"You dragged your sister into it?!" Lori asks my brother. She looks angry. "her life is already fucked up and you teach her how to... Torture someone!?" Rick looks at my bloody hands and then back to Daryl.

"She's right." Rick mumbles. "I dont think you should've.."

Daryl looks at Lori in a bad mood and interrupts Rick. "You gonna tell me how to take care of my sister now? What's right and what's wrong and all that shit?"

"Daryl" Carol says worried

"What? Youre mother of the year now? Wanna start a chat on how to raise a kid?" No one responds to that. "Thats what I thought."

Rick looks at him and says in a calmed voice "You didn't kill him did you?"

"No"

"You're not gonna say anything?! He made her torture a human being!" Lori insists. I stay quiet.

"Not my call." Rick turns to her "No one goes near this guy." He says standing up and walking away. All the group is shocked. They knew what we were doing, they just never thought we would do it like that.

* * *

I am tired. I'm glad my brother tells me to go back to our small personal camp. I walk beside him as I try to ignore the looks of the other group members. I try not to feel bad about what I did, but I still think that this is just fucked up.

I lay carefully on the cold dirt and try to relax my heavy breathing. I hate Shane for doing this to me. I was doing so well, I was almost 100% healed and he decides to slam me like an old rag.

"You good?" Daryl asks standing a few feet away. He starts smoking

"Aye. All good. I just need to catch my breath"

"Since when do you say 'aye'?"

"Since I decided I'll use foreign words to annoy you"

Daryl rolld his eyes.

We're quiet now. I finish cleaning the blood off myself while he smokes.

I sigh. "Do you think we were to hard on him?"

"No. That was just the basics." I look away trying not to think on what my brother has done before. "Queen bitch was right, maybe. You're still too young for that."

"Maybe."

"You regret it?"

"No"

"Then you're good. Just need to get used to it" I smile slightly.

We spend the entire morning there. Just talking sometimes. Sometimes we just stay quiet. The thing is, we try not to bring Merle into our conversations. It's painful.. At least for me...

I know it is for Daryl too. He just hides it to not lose his macho shit.

It's hard.

We spent our whole lives with that fucking, drug addict, sarcastic, dirty-minded, biker we called brother. The majority of our stories have something to do with him, and now he's just gone, but that's not the hard part at all. The question here is, what really happened to him?

Daryl never mentioned any details.

I turn my head to the side

I sit, shake the dirt off my head and say "Dale coming"

Daryl whispers a 'shit' and rolls his eyes. He prepares mentally for the old man to arrive. "The whole point of coming up here is to get away from you people." He says loud enough for the man to listen

"Gonna take more than that" Dale says. I smirk at the comment. Burn, Daryl.

"Carol sent you? Or Lori?" Daryl growls

"They're not the only ones that are concerned about you, what you teach this girl"

Daryl stands and walks turning his back at us. I watch both of them carefully. I'm curious.

"Man, I don't need anyone telling me how to take care of my sister, or what to teach her. It's none of y'all's business."

"You act like you don't care about us. Anything that could happen."

"Yeah, it's cause I don't."

"So live or die, you don't care what happens to Randall?"

"Nope." Daryl says in a funny tone. He means what he says and says what he means. He doesn't give a shit about Randall. He takes his crossbow adjusting the new arrows he made yesterday and nods to me as a 'stand up' sign.

I do as he says. I don't want him trying to kill Dale.

I put my hand on my side and take a deep breath. Shit this hurts.

"Then why not stand with me, try to save the kid's life, if it really doesn't matter one way or the other?"

"Wont get myself in trouble for a desperate son of a bitch."

Dale tuns to me then. He looks so desperate. Just like Daryl said.

I chew on my lower lip, a habit I got from Daryl when I'm anxious.

"What about you? You can't just go on after you tortured the poor kid!"

"Well, I dunno...Rick's got a point. His group's dangerous."

"You can't be so cold and selfish!"

"Listen, I know killing him is not right but letting him run? Thats not an option. It wont make a difference

"Your opinion makes the difference! You two cared about what happened to Sophia."

"And that gave me who knows how many broken ribs and almost killed Daryl."

"That was Shane. But he's different."

"Why is that?" Daryl asks sarcastically "oh yeah! Did you know he killed Otis?"

"He.. Told you?"

"He told us some story...How Otis covered him, saved his ass. He showed up with the dead guy's gun. Rick ain't he didn't figure that out, it's cause he didn't wanna. It's like I said. The group's broken." He finishes and looks at me. He asks if I'm ready and walks away.

I look at Dale.

"You need to talk to him" Dale tells me

"You coming?!" I hear Daryl yell.

"I'll think about it" I murmur and walk to where Daryl is leaving Dale back.

I feel bad for him, but Rick is right.

Randall shouldn't be here.


	17. Mistake

Daryl and I are waiting with Hershel's family and the rest of the group for Rick, Shane and Lori.

They're outside walking to where we are.

Lori talks to Carl. He wants to listen, but she wont let him.

They walk in. Carl waits for us to talk. We look at him.

He rolls his eyes and walks away.

"So how do we do this?" Glenn asks "Just take a vote?"

"Does it have to be unanimous?" Andrea looks at Rick

"How about majority rules?" Lori adds.

"Well, let's.." Rick starts "let's just see where everybody stands, then we can talk through the options."

Shane snorts "Well, where I sit, there's only one way to move forward."

"Killing him, right?" Dale says "I mean, why even bother to even take a vote? It's clear which way the wind's blowing."

"Well" Rick says looking around to all of us "if people believe we should spare him, I wanna know."

"Well, I can tell you it's a small group" Dale looks at me. I am sitting on the floor next to Daryl, who leans against a cabinet on the wall. My brother looks down to me confused. I shake my head slowly and look down. I'm sorry. I don't see a way of saving the guy. Dale looks disappointed "Maybe just me and Glenn."

"Look, I..." Glen looks down too "I think you're pretty much right about everything, all the time, but this..."

"They've got you scared." Dale nods sadly

"He's not one of us." Glenn adds "And we've lost too many people already."

"How about you?" He turns to Maggie now."Do you agree with this?"

"Couldn't we continue keeping him prisoner?" She looks at Rick

"Just another mouth to feed." Daryl says

"It may be a lean winter." Hershel says

"We could ration better." Lori suggests

"Well, he could be an asset." Dale says getting desperate "Give him a chance to prove himself."

I honestly don't think thats a good idea.

"Put him to work?" Rick asks "We're not letting him walk around."

"We could put an escort on him." Andrea suggests

"Who wants to volunteer for that duty?" Shane asks

"I will." Dale keeps insisting.

I'm tired of sitting. My ribs hurt in this position

I stand up and put my weight on one of my legs. I keep listening

"I don't think any of us should be walking around with this guy." Rick says

"He's right." Lori adds "I wouldn't feel safe unless he was tied up."

"We can't exactly put chains around his ankles, sentence him to hard labor."

True. Finally Andrea says something smart.

"Look, say we let him join us, right?" Shane comments "Maybe he's helpful, maybe he's nice. We let our guard down and maybe he runs off, brings back his 30 men."

No thank you.

"So the answer is to kill him to prevent a crime that he may never even attempt?"

Yes, Dale! Kill the bitch!

"If we do this, we're saying there's no hope! Rule of law is dead! There is no civilization.!"

"Oh, my God." Shane sighs

"Could you drive him further out? Leave him like you planned?" Hershel looks at Rick

"You barely came back this are walkers." Lori tells him shaking her head "You could break down. you could get lost."

"Or get ambushed." Daryl finishes for her.

"They're right." Glenn tells Dale. "We should not put our own people at risk."

"If you go through with it, how would you do it?" Patricia asks Rick and Shane "Would he suffer?"

"We could hang him, right? Just snap his neck." Shane assures

"I thought about that." Rick tells her quietly "Shooting may be more humane." I look at Daryl. His look is getting darker again. He massages his hand while he thinks about it.

Shane talks again "And what about the body? Do we bury him?"

Isn't it obvious?!

"Hold on, hold on!" Dale says loudly "You're talking about this like it's already decided."

"Don't you get it?" I tell him walking a little forward "It is decided."

"You've been talking all day, going around in circles." Daryl says putting his index finger up. He moves his hand in circles while saying this "You just wanna go around in circles again?"

"This is a young man's life, and it is worth more than a five-minute conversation! Is this what it's come to? We kill someone because we can't decide what else to do with him? You saved him and now look at us.! He's been tortured." Dale points at us, then at Shane "He's gonna be executed." He scoffs "How are we any better than those people that we're so afraid of?"

"We all know what needs to be done." Shane says

"No, Dale is right." Andrea interrupts him. We all look at her quietly.

"All right, that's enough." Rick says looks like we're almost done. "Anybody who wants the floor before we make a final decision has the chance."

No one talks, no one moves. Nothing.

We have decided.

"You once said that we don't kill the living."

"Well, that was before the living tried to kill us."

Dale just won't shut up. He keeps arguing.

I'm tired and in pain. This is making me grumpy.

He steps forward saying "But don't you see? If we do this, the people that we were..."

"Is dead." I interrupt him. "Our world is dead. People we knew are dead. This world here is ugly. Its harsh. We're like animals now." I look at my brother. He's looking right at me. He knows what I'm going to say because he told me this before leaving Jim behind. "Its all about instincts. Survival of the fittest. You're a bitch or you die."

Glenn and Maggie look at each other. Lori looks down. Shane and Rick nod. Hershel and Patricia look around.

"Anybody else?" Rick ask.

No one answers. We all agree except for Dale, who shakes his head. "Are y'all gonna watch, too? No, you'll go hide your heads in your tents and try to forget that we're slaughtering a human being."

I wont hide. Daryl just won't let me watch.

Dale is done talking.

Finally!

He walks to Daryl and says angrily "This group is broken." Then, he walks away.

* * *

It is Dark already.

It's starting to feel cold.

Today we're going to keep an eye on the farm.

The cold weather makes my injuries hurt. It's not to cold, but it happens when you have a broken bone... At least to me.

Daryl gave me his leather jacket.

He says its ok because it's not cold enough for him to wear it.

We need to find me a jacket as soon as possible...

We're on top of the RV waiting for Rick's signal so Daryl can go get Randall. The rest are inside the farmhouse.

Just like I imagined, Daryl wont let me go with him. Even if he wanted to, Rick told him to leave me out of it. He said Carl and I are too young for it.

We stay there until we see a light flashing from the porch. Daryl tells me to pay attention and call him if I need something.

I tell him not to worry and he goes.

He wont be long. Not more than a few minutes to get the guy into the barn, do the job, and bury the corpse.

It should take about an hour, I guess...

Holy shit! Is that Carl?

He's walking to the barn, where Rick, Shane and Daryl will execute Randall.

I sigh.

Where's Lori when you need her? That kid's gonna get someone killed!

I see how Carl enters the barn, and a few seconds later Shane pulls him out.

Rick comes out later, followed by Daryl leading Randall back to his place.

"Fucking congratulations" I mumble to myself when Rick takes Carl away for a walk.

Shane goes back into the farmhouse fuming.

I turn and keep looking for walkers

I hear the ladder creaking after a while and turn to see my brother standing there.

I don't know what he's thinking. Usually I can tell how he feels but his eyes won't tell me anything tonight.

"Anything interesting?" He asks

"Well.. Yes. I've been looking carefully but I can't see what took that cow down." I say pointing at a dead cow in the distance. It's barely visible, but easy to spot. I turn to grab my bag and take a water bottle "It was like that since we came out of the farmhouse, but I don't see walkers."

Daryl looks carefully too. He hums interested. "What I'm trying to figure out is what is Dale doing walking to said cow."

Dale?

I let everything go and go back next to Daryl to look at it.

There he is. He's walking towards the animal with a rifle in his hands. "What is he..."

"Oh shit."

We see a walker walking to him. Dale hasn't noticed.

Daryl takes the hunting rifle and tries to shoot the undead but the rifle fails.

Its stuck. Wont shoot unless we fix it, but we have to open it first.

We don't have time for that.

"Down!" Daryl says

I climb down the ladder as fast as I can and start running to the old man with my knife in my hand.

Daryl jumps down the RV when we hear the scream.

We run fast to help Dale.

He calls for help a couple of times as we run to where he is.

It feels like its taking us forever to get there"

I hear voices behind us. The group is trying to figure out where Dale is exactly.

His calls change from fear to pain.

I see it. The undead on top of him.

My brother tackles the walker away from the old man and stabs its head while I kneel besides Dale. I look at his injuries in shock.

"Over here!" Daryl jumps up and down as I assure the man in front of me that he'll be fine.

"Dale!" The man is shaking. He closes his eyes as hard as he can. "Dale, look at me. Help is coming" I tell him. He looks at me sobbing. He is scared. "We'll put you back together. Its gonna be fine."

I keep assuring him that he'll survive. I highly doubt it, but I keep telling him that he's going to be fine. That Hershel is going to help him.

I feel terrible.

I could've just sided with him.

I left him alone...

The group arrives. They are crying and shocked.

"Its ok," I tell dale again. He takes my hand tightly "Everything's gonna be fine"

He looks into my eyes completely creeped out.

Rick is trying to convince Hershel to do something but its useless. Dale wont survive anyways.

"He's suffering!" Andrea cries "do something!"

Rick holds his gun to the man's head. He hesitates. We wait for him to shoot.

Dale's eyes say something I've never seen myself. 'Kill me' they say 'please end this'

But Rick won't shoot. He's not able to do it.

Daryl looks down to Dale and walks to Rick.

He takes the python kneeling next to the injured man who keeps pleading for him to end his life

Daryl looks at him in the eye as he puts the gun to his head.

"Its ok,Dale." I say feeling sad for him and squeeze his hand a little tighter to let him know that I'm still with him "it'll be over soon"

They look at each other for a few seconds until I hear my brother mumble. "Sorry, brother."

Daryl pulls the trigger.


	18. Confusion

"Dale could get under your skin. He sure got under mine, because he wasn't afraid to say exactly what he thought, how he felt. That kind of honesty is rare and brave. Whenever I'd make a decision, I'd look at Dale. He'd be looking back at me with that look he had. We've all seen it one time or another. I couldn't always read him, but he could read us. He saw people for who they were. He knew things about us..The truth... Who we really are. In the end, he was talking about losing our humanity. He said this group was broken. The best way to honor him is to unbreak it. Set aside our differences and pull together, feeling sorry for ourselves and take control of our lives. Our safety our future...We're not broken. We're gonna prove him wrong. From now on. We're gonna do it his way. That is how we honor Dale"

Those were Rick's words when we buried Dale.

Daryl and I were asked to join Andrea and Shane on a car trip to the boundaries of Herschel's farm to look for walkers.

Kill as many as we can.

We still hadn't spoken much since Dale's burial. No one feels like it.

Daryl and I are sitting on the back of Herschel's blue farm truck. Going from side to side of the farm.

I turn my head to look at Daryl next to me. He's looking at something on the other side of the farm.

He still looks upset, but not like before. He's seems to be healing physically and emotionally since Sophia.

All of us are, even though we lost Dale last night.

Its been hard, but we're getting over it.

After some time we encounter a small group of walkers by the lake and once there, there's just one thing to do.

Slaughter them. Letting out our Anger.. Madness... Frustration... Wrath... Depression...

All of our negative feelings.

Its so bad that three months ago, before the outbreak, people would think that we're psychopaths. But this is just a way of stress release.

We return to the farmhouse by noon. The rest of the group is busy getting their things together.

It's time for Daryl and I to get together with the group again.

My brother will help some of them with the shovels, tools, pitchforks and vehicles.

The rest, including me, are gonna get thing into the farmhouse.

We're going to live all together at least for the rest of the year and until the winter comes to an end.

Rick walks out of his tent just when we arrive and Hershel comes to say what we need to do.

"It'll be tight" Rick says "15 people in one house"

"Don't worry about that." Hershel replies "With the swamp hardening and the creek drying up... 50 head of cattle on the property, we might as well be ringing a damn dinner bell. We should've moved you in a while ago" Herschel says making Rick nod.

"Don't worry about it, let's move the vehicles near each of the doors.. facing out toward the road. We'll build a look out in the windmill, another in the barn should give us sight lines both sides of the property. T-Dog you take the perimeter around the house. Keep track of everyone coming and going."

T-Dog looks at Rick with a frown.

"What about standing guard?"

"I have two siblings that are perfect for the job. They will take care of that." Rick tells him looking up at us.

We nod.

"I'll stock the basement with food and water. Enough that we can all survive there a few days if need be" Herschel informs and places a big box on his truck.

"What about patrols?" Andrea asks Rick

"Let's get this area locked down first. After that Shane'll assign shifts while me and Daryl take Randall off site and cut him loose."

Daryl frowns but decides to stay quiet.

I think its a bad idea.

"We're back to that now?" I hear Shane asking and look at him. Rick nods.

"It was the right plan first time around. Poor execution."

Shane snorts and says "Yeah that's a slight understatement."

"You don't agree but this is what's happening. Swallow it. Move on" Rick replies getting closer to Shane.

"Ouch" I whisper to my brother "Not another fist fight..."

"It wont happen." He replies whispering too "don't worry about it."

"You know that Dale's death and the prisoner, that's two separate things, right? You wanna take Daryl as your wing man, be my guest" Shane says shaking his head.

Lori looks at him in surprise.

Rick and Shane are looking at each other in a serious way until Shane looks away not being able to hold Rick's stare.

Rick says "yeah, thats what I thought."

* * *

Rick told us to secure the barn.

We've been nailing planks into the shed for more than an hour now.

We've been quiet most of the time until I yelp.

"Whats wrong?" Daryl asks with a worried tone in his voice.

"Fucking hammer broke!"

"And?" He asks once more taking my hand to look at it.

The hammer broke and a piece of wood cut my palm a bit. Its small, but bleeding too much for its size

He laughs "are you seriously whining for a cut?"

"Shut up." I say while he wraps my hand with the red rag he always carries.

I go get another hammer.

* * *

We go back to the farmhouse.

He's bandaging my hand just to avoid infection when Rick comes out.

He has a map in his hand and walks to us.

He smiles when he sees how careful My brother is with my hand.

He waits until He's done and calls.

"Come over here for a minute, let's talk this through."

"Both of us?" Daryl asks

"Yeah, I don't mind her knowing where were taking Randall."

Daryl nods and stands to join Rick.

The cop lays the map on the railing of the porch while Daryl positions himself besides Rick and I lean next to them.

"I think we should take him out of Senoia. Hour there, hour back, give or take. We may lose the light, but we'll be halfway home by then." I hear Rick say.

My brother nods and sits down the railing. "This little pain in the ass will be a distant memory. Good riddance"

"Carol's putting together some provisions for him, enough to last a few days" Rick says. Daryl nods. "That thing you did last night..." He refers to Dale.

"Ain't no reason you should do all the heavy lifting."

Well, now I know that we're not going anywhere anytime soon.

Daryl and Rick have come to terms. I know it because I see how he respects him and accepts him as a leader.

Both of us do.

A car parks in front of us as they talk. We look at Shane walking to us.

Shane is a whole other thing. I'm still trying to figure out what happened to him.

Rick puts his hand on his hips and sighs.

Daryl folds the map and hands it to Rick.

"I ugh... I'm gonna take a piss..." There is no way he's getting near Shane again, and now we know that they're bitching over Lori and her unborn child. "Come on" he tells me walking away.

Rick raises an eyebrow.

Yeah, I thought the same. Taking a piss?

You need a better lie, dear brother.

I follow him.

* * *

Two goddamn words. Randall's missing.

I was talking to Rick and Daryl. They were getting the truck ready to take the kid out when T-Dog came running.

When Daryl opened the shed is was empty. Rick looked like he was about to explode.

He was so mad!

He asked who was on watch and made Andrea come to look for him but all we found were empty blankets and bloody handcuffs.

Suddenly all the group, including Hershel, is looking everywhere too.

"I'm sorry!" Andrea says "I don't know how could I miss it."

"Second time you miss something" I say "why don't you give up on it?"

She looks at me with an angry look.

"Can you please stop bitching around? I need you to track this." Daryl says looking at the disturbed floor "please do better than last time."

I sigh. "Found anything?"

"Workin on it" Daryl murmurs searching the ground.

"Well" I say looking at Rick "The cuffs are still hooked. He must've slipped 'em."

"Is that possible?" Carol asks Andrea exiting the shed as well.

"Pretty much, yeah. If you've got nothing to lose" Rick tells her

"The door was secured from the outside" Herschel reminds us and I feown and think about it.

"How could he get out then, it's impossible!" Glenn says.

Andrea shrugs "He could've made his way out through the top window."

"Wrong again." I tell her pointing at the window "We secured it this morning. Planks and nails.."

"Well then how did he do it?" Maggie asks.

The only explanation here must be someone set him free.

Rick looks like he's about to say something when he's interrupted by Shane who steps out of the woods running.

We all look at him confused.

Daryl stands up and walks back to me.

Shane's face is bloody.

"What the hell?" I mumble

Lori joins running too when she sees Shane calling for Rick that way. "What happened?"

"He's armed! He's got my gun!"

We walk closer to him.

"Are you okay?" Carl asks him

"I'm fine. Little bastard just snuck up on me. He clocked me in the face!"

"Just let him go. That was the plan, wasn't it, to just let him go?" Carol asks and Rick shakes his head.

"The plan was to cut him loose far away from here, but not on our front step with a gun."

"Don't go out there. You all know what can happen!" Lori tells them worried.

Rick ignores her. He thinks for a bit and then reacts.

Rick turns around to face us. He commands Hershel and T-Dog to get everyone in the house.

"Mac, Daryl, come with us, we need tracking. Glenn, Come with us. We may need backup."

T-Dog and Hershel turn and walk to the house.

"Lock all the doors and stay put!" Rick yells and the group did as they were told.

Daryl checks on his arrows while Glenn and I check on our guns.

Shane sees my revolver.

"I umm... May need that gun" he tells me.

I pause. I look at Rick.

'Should I?' I ask with my eyes. Rick nods.

I give my revolver to Shane. "Take care of it."

"Yeah, I'll give it back when we're back."

I nod

"You ready for this?" Daryl asks me as the five of us walk to the woods "I hope so"

I'm anxious. Shane's been acting weird and suddenly he's all friendly and worried again? I don't like this. Daryl, Rick and Glenn seem to think the same. They look anxious too.

"I saw him head up through the trees that way before I blacked out" Shane says once we walk deep into the woods. He points at a random direction.

they were deep inside the woods. He pointed at some place between the trees.

We stop except for Rick. He walks a few steps and looks around.

He puts his hand on a tree looking at it carefully, then he turns around and walks to me and Daryl.

He asks "can you track him?"

Daryl walks to the same tree Rick inspected and I look down.

I don't think we can track him like this. There are no footprints.

I shrug "I don't see nothing"

Daryl shakes his head. "Nothing human except for us."

"Hey, look, there ain't no use in tracking him, okay? He went that way. We need to pair up. We spread out, we just chase him down. That's it" Shane says

Daryl frowns. "Kid weighs a buck, 25 soaking wet. You trying to tell us he got the jump on you?"

"Where did the guy get a fuckin rock inside that shed?" I ask looking at Daryl. He shrugs.

"Alright, knock it off." Rick says "You and Daryl start heading up the right flank. Take Glenn with you." We nod. "Me and Shane'll take the left. Remember, Randall's not the only threat out there so keep an eye out for each other."

* * *

Its getting Dark incredibly fast.

Its been like an hour, maybe a little more, and we're walking through the dark woods.

Glenn took out a flashlight so its all the light we have.

"Why is it taking so long?" Glenn asks us. "Any clues already?"

"Wanna try yourself? Its not easy when we can't really see a thing" Daryl tells him.

"Don't you think it's a bit weird?" I ask both of them while scratching a footprint. Its too dry to be recent. Not what we're looking for.

"What?" Glenn asks

"This whole story. Randall jumping on that bull?"

"Bull." Glen laughs. Daryl listens carefully.

"Yeah, I mean breaking your hands to get through the cuffs is tough shit. I don't think he had the balls to do it."

"I know it's bullshit." Daryl says "But that doesn't change that the kid's still missing."

"Well," Glenn shrugs "Guess we just need to find him to get answers."

"His body. More likely."

I frown and look at my brother. "You think he killed the guy?"

"Well he sure did some crap. And it didn't exactly look like Randall was his girlfriend."

"Why sending us to look for him then?" Glenn asks

"No idea" Daryl replies and we keep walking.

We walk.. And walk... And walk...

We walk for about 30 more minutes. I'm getting tired of this.

I cough. I'm starting to cough more and more often each day...

My ribs still hurt because of the weather too.

Feels like pressure building in there.

Daryl gives me his vest and we keep looking.

"Glenn." He calls "gimme some light."

Glenn and I look at each other. We approach him and ask if he found something. "There's two sets of tracks right here. Shane must've followed him a lot longer than he said."

I frown.

"I told you Shane had something in mind. That guy's fucked up" Glenn says

"Look, there's fresh blood on this tree." I say putting my finger on it. "It's still sticky"

"There's more tracks. Looks like they're walking in tandem." Daryl says following the footprints

We frown even more "You mean like the kid up front and Shane covering his back? Maybe with a pistol?" Glenn asks. Daryl turns to us and snorts.

"Thanks for reminding me what walking in tandem means, smartass"

"Cut it off and keep sniffing, Scooby" I tell him. He rolls his eyes and keeps walking.

"Looks like there was a little dust up right here." He points at the ground. Glenn scratches his head

"Redneck-English, Please."

Daryl growls.

I sigh and look at him. "You did not just said that"

"I mean something went down." Daryl replies. "Don't fuck with us, Japan"

"I told you, I'm Korean"

"Whatever, Jackass...Looks like RoboCop jumped on the kid." Daryl goes back to the topic.

"I fucking knew it!"

"Keep looking" Daryl tells me

"Yes Mrs. Doubtfire" I smirk

Glenn laughs.

"Come here." I do as he says while Glenn looks around and kneel next to him "see this?"

"Yes"

"Had a little trouble" he says handing me the blindfold. He found it on the ground. We must be close.

"Guys?" We hear Glenn calling us. We stand and look at him. "You heard.."

A branch breaking.

"Watch for walkers" Daryl says.

We look around trying to locate what caused the sound.

Sounds like a walker.

Glenn's flashlight fails and we're alone in the dark.

We keep still. None of us make a sound.

We're barely breathing.

When Glenn tries to make it work again, I see a dark figure right in front of me.

It's growling slightly.

If I move It'll bite me. I'm almost sure of it.

Looks like its sniffing or something.

I take Daryl's shirt and pull slightly to catch his attention just when the flashlight turns back on.

The walker growls louder and reaches for me.

"Daryl!" I almost shout jumping back.

The Glenn backs up.

Daryl takes the walker pulling it away from me. He steps on a root and trips backwards I sEe one of Daryl's crossbow bolts on the floor and run to get it.

"Shoot it!" Daryl says holding the walker because it kept moving and snarling

"Hold it still!" Glenn says nervously trying to aim with his gun. "I can hit you if you keep moving like that"

"I don't care! Kill it!"

I take the bolt and approach them. I take the walker's hair and stick the object in its eye.

"Son of a..." Daryl stands and approaches Glenn angrily "why didn't you shoot it?!"

"I didn't want to shoot you!"

"Hey!" I shout "quit the bitching."

Both of them look at me confused.

"It's Randall." I tell them kneeling besides the dead thing.

"Wait.. Randall?" Glenn asks

"His neck is... Twisted or something." I frown.

"Let me see" Daryl says. I stand and walk next to Glenn. Daryl kneels where I was.

We're looking at Randall's body.

Daryl puts a hand on his cheek to move his head slightly.

"Got his neck broken" he mutters. He pulls his shoulder and turns him to see his back. He checks the body and says frowning."He's got no bites."

We frown too.

"No fuckin way" Glenn mumbles

"he was a walker. Maybe you just didn't see any. Check again" I suggest

He moves Randall's jacket and shakes his head. "Nope, I'm telling you. He died from this." Daryl points at his neck.

I chew on my lips nervously.

"So are you telling me that everyone becomes a walker now once they're dead?" Glenn asks

Daryl shrugs and looks at Randall once more. "I dunno. Looks like it."

"Creepy..." I say

"Come on now, let's head back to camp. We should tell the others." Daryl gets up.

We walk to the farm quietly.

We walk out of the woods and see the farm ahead.

"You think Shane did it?" Glenn asks. "I.. I mean... I've never seen people snapping their own necks. Looked like Randall wanted to live."

"Ain't you smart?" Daryl asks "who else could've done it?"

"Well" I say "I'm not gonna miss him, thats for sure. "

"We should tell them. Shane is losing it completely" Glenn says.

"I don't know." Daryl mumbles.. "That's the least of my worries."

"What do you mean?"

"Sending us one way so he could be alone with Rick? I think he took him to..."

Daryl is interrupted by a piercing shot echoing all over the place.

We stopand look around.

Daryl looks directly at me.

Glenn looks surprised "wait a moment... was that...you gave Shane a revolver didn't you?"

"Holy shit..." I look at my brother. I'm worried now.

We look at one other in shock

"move it!" Daryl roars and starts running to the farmhouse.


	19. This isn't a democracy anymore

'No' was the only thing that Lori replied when we asked if Rick and Shane are back yet.

Everyone is looking at us with interested but yet confused and worried eyes. They want to know what exactly is going on. We gather around in the living room.

Glenn, Daryl and I are losing our minds. We heard the shot. The three of us did.

We look at one another in confusion.

What if Shane killed Rick?

I'm starting to worry. What would happen then?

I honestly don't think all this could work with Shane as our leader as before. He's changed a lot.

"Whats going on?" Maggie asks concerned

"We heard a shot" Glenn replies walking back and forth.

"Maybe they found Randall" Lori suggests. Her eyes shining with hope until Daryl talks

"No. We found him."

"Is he back in the shed?" Andrea asks

"He's a walker" he growls

Hershel, who was sitting this hole time, stands up worried and walks over to my brother "Did you find the walker that bit him?"

"No, He wasn't bit." Glenn says making Daryl nod. I walk to the window to look in case one of them comes back.

I can't see anything. Just darkness.

"His neck was broken." Daryl continues the conversation as I walk back to them.

"What does that mean?" Andrea asks again while Lori walks around in an anxious way

"Someone killed him." I say walking back to them. "And it wasn't a walker"

Daryl puts his crossbow on the table, earning an angry look from Hershel. "The thing is, Shane and Randall's tracks were right on top of each other. And Shane ain't no tracker, so he didn't come up behind him. They were together."

Lori turns to me. "What happened exactly?"

"Daryl found footsteps. We followed them to find Randall, but he found us first. He almost ate me and my brother so we thought that a walker got him. Daryl checked the body and discovered that... Well... He wasn't bit. Looks like Shane killed him."

"No, thats not possible." She says with wide eyes "Shane is not a killer." Rick's wife's face is melted completely. "Would you please get back out there," She begs my brother "find Rick and Shane and find out what on earth is going on?"

He nods. "You got it."

I look at him. I don't want him to go out there.

Something is definitely not right. Even the night is too quiet.

"Wait" I stop him when he walks to the door to leave.

"Wait here with the others" he tells me

"If you're going I want to go with you" I complain trying my best to convince him

"No. I don't like this. I don't want you getting even more hurt." He shakes his head and walks out with one last 'Don't get yourself killed' he opens the door to head out.

We watch in horror how he stops right there. A whole herd is coming out of the woods .

"Christ..." He whispers. We join him at the porch to see it better.

Maybe to believe it.

Hundreds of walkers by the barn and they're heading directly to us.

Moaning. Staggering.

They're ready to kill all of us. Rip the flesh off our bones and eat us like beef jerky.

The creepy thing is how they all look with just the moonlight on them.

It gives us all chills.

We're screwed.

Daryl grunts.

Hershel orders Patricia to kill the lights. She goes.

"I'll go get the guns." Andrea says and runs inside.

"Wait. Maybe they're just passing, like the herd on the highway. Should we just go inside?" Glenn asks making my brother frown

"Not unless there's a tunnel downstairs I don't know about." Daryl says "A herd that size would rip the house down"

"Not just the house." I say.

I look at Lori she seems puzzled, scared, even out of breath.

Carol asks her whats wrong. She hesitates for a second and after swallowing hard she says she can't find Carl. She's panicking.

"What do you mean you can't find your kid?" Daryl frowns and walks closer to her.

"He..he was upstairs, I can't find him anymore."

I roll my eyes.

Come on Carl, you can't just run around like that.

"Maybe he's hiding" Glenn suggests.

"He's supposed to be upstairs. I'm not leaving without my boy" Lori says and Carol nods.

"We're gonna find him. We'll look for him. Together." She says and both of them move back inside to look for him.

Hershel takes his people and tells them to take supplies and guns. He says they're going to kill as many walkers as they can and lead the others away from the farm

"Are you serious?!" Daryl asks puzzled

"This is my farm" he says "I was born here. I'll die here"

Daryl raises an eyebrow. "You sure have some guts to be an old man." Daryl murmurs and jumps off the porch. "Come on" he says to me. "We got stuff to do."

I'm scared. My heart is beating fast already and its getting hard to breathe.

I wonder if its the last time I'll feel anything at all...

I see all those walkers and I know more than one of us is going to die, but Dying like this...Protecting the farm. The group.

At least its a decent way of dying.

"You know, I'd rather not risk my life and die..." I mumble.

Daryl frowns and looks at me in disbelief until I nod slightly and walk to where he is "But dying fighting a herd is way more badass than dying running off somewhere. Let's do this."

Daryl smiles. We run to the bike.

* * *

That roaring sound calms me a little bit.

Daryl drives around the farm like the majority of the others who got a vehicle.

We shoot the walkers that seem to never end. They keep coming closer and closer.

He stops the bike by the fence so we can shoot at the fuckers near the barn. It's no use.

The barn starts burning.

Rick?

No one else could've started that fire.. Or is it Shane?

"You think its them?" Daryl asks after killing one more walker.

"May be." I say "we gotta go, it's too many of them."

No matter how many bullets we waste, walkers are still coming.

We tell Hershel's kid, who's driving the RV to check if Rick or Shane are near the barn and help them. Then we go our own ways.

Its hard with the bike because they reach you easily and thats the reason why I hear a bullet passing right by my side. The sound startles me as I try to evade it and I lose my valance.

Without even registering whats going on, I'm rolling on the floor.

The air inside me leaves me as soon as I hit the ground. I try to breathe in but it's impossible right now.

Well, shit.

I feel every single rock and root scratching and cutting my skin.

This is going to give me a black eye.

When it stops I stand up as fast as I can trying to get some air into my still injured lung and try to look for Daryl's spare gun. I was using it since the beretta only had six bullets and we used them fast. Now the spare gun is somewhere in the herd.

I cough until my chest hurts while I try to avoid the walkers and find my brother.

I see a path without walkers. I run through it.

I take my knife to protect myself.

I know its useless. I'm just waiting for a bite anyway.

Its just too many of them.

The burning barn causes the cool weather to become hot.

Hershel's farm is no longer safe.

"Mac!" I hear Daryl calling me but I cant find him.

Everything is lost. Even our lives.

I try to kill as many walkers as I can while looking for him.

Two walkers approach me.

I kill one. The other trips with his dead friend on the ground.

I Look around me. I scream as hard as I can trying to call my brother.

I hear Carol screaming.

I look for her but give up after a while. I don't hear the motorcycle anymore.

Theres nothing else I can do.

I'm going to die here.

The walkers are closing on me. I'm starting to feel desperate.

The walkers in front of me fall on the ground too, except this ones are dead

Glenn and Maggie stop their car.

They killed the walkers.

I run to them. I open the door fast and lock it when I'm on the back seat.

"Lets go!" I say nervously and cough.

"Are you alright?!" Maggie asks nervously

"I don't know! Just go!." I feel the need to cry "Go!"

"You bit?" Glenn looks at me for a second. Maggie starts driving.

I am shaking. "No. I don't think so" I say shaking my head and sniffing the tears back.

"Good."he nods "Good."

"Have you seen Daryl?" I ask looking back.

"No, sorry" I'm really worried "I heard his bike but I'm not sure"

"I'm sure he's fine. You don't have to worry about him." Maggie says "You saw Beth? Or my dad?"

"I saw Rick approaching Hershel. Don't know anything about Beth though."

"Where the hell are they going?" Glenn asks when we notice T-Dog driving away on Hershel's truck

"Should I follow them?" Maggie asks

"I'd say yes. Swing it around." Glenn moves his hands motioning what he wants her to do. "Swing it around here."

"Whoa!" The three of us say when a group of walkers close on us. They hit the windows and scratch the car trying to get us.

"Oh my God." Glenn mumbles.

I start coughing once more.

This is just too much. Why am I coughing so much?

"I can't get through." Maggie says anxiously

Glenn looks at her "Head out."

"What?"

"Get off the farm now."

"Don't say that."

I look at both of them. Shut up and do something already!

"Maggie, it's lost!"

"The others! We can't leave them!"

I take a deep annoyed breath and stop coughing. "Get off the farm now!" I roar desperately

"Come on!" Glenn says

She nods and holds Glenn's hand while driving away.

* * *

Its morning already. I can see Maggie's crying.

Looks like she's having a depressive crisis or something like that.

I don't blame her. I feel the same way. What if we're the only ones that came out?

"Stop the car" Glenn requests "please"

They both out of the car to argue a little. I look at them through the window.

I feel the urge to cough but hold it. If I cough my body is gonna be in more pain than it already is.

I don't know if I should worry about it...

Glenn gets on the car on the driver's seat with Maggie by his side.

Glenn drives for a while.

We're still on the road. No one has said a word but at least Maggie had stopped crying.

Maggie and I are looking out of the window, lost in our thoughts until I cant hold it and cough slightly and Glenn talks to me.

"Hey Mac, are you sure you're ok?"

I nod.

"I'm fine. I just..." I sit in the middle of the back seat with half my body in between their seats. "There's nothing to say right now."

"Yeah." He looks at me from the rear mirror. "Sometimes I forget you're a Dixon. You guys are really quiet. Maybe you should talk more often."

"Maybe." I think for a moment "Where are we going? You sure ain't driving for fun"

Glenn smiles.

"Ain't. That word reminds me of Merle, you know?."

"I'm glad you remember my brother."

"Yeah, I do. I don't miss him though."

"I bet no one does. If it wasn't for me or Daryl no one would even remember him." the car is silent again.

What if I lost Daryl too?

I feel like crying but I don't want to give poor Glenn more trouble.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want it to sound so rude." I stay quiet and go back behind Glenn's seat to stare at the woods.

"You think Daryl will be more remembered than Merle?"

Glenn frowns "Daryl?"

"You think he...?"

"No! Daryl's a tough guy" Glenn tries to make me feel better "Nothing's gonna hurt him anytime soon. We'll find him"

"Yeah." I mumble "and nothing could kill Merle but Merle..."

"I'm sorry..."

Theres silence again for about a minute when Glenn speaks again "By the way, we are going back to where we lost sophia."

"You think someone actually made it?" I ask making him smile

"Something tells me I'm not the only one with the idea."

When Glenn finished his sentence I hear a very well known roaring of a motorcycle.

Immediately I look back again to see Daryl and Carol approaching us.

I sigh relieved.

They're alive.

Daryl drives by our side. Carol smiles at me slightly. I smile back.

Daryl looks at me for a moment, then looks at Glenn and nods. Glenn nods back.

They ride in front of us until we arrive to that specific place we were looking for.

* * *

We find our group...

Or whats left of it...

Looks like they've been arguing.

Some of us didn't make it.

Rick walks over to Daryl when he sees us. He smiles putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Where'd you find everyone?"

"Well" Daryl smiles back and looks at Glenn "those guys' tail lights zigzagging all over the road figured he had to be Asian, driving like that."

"Good one." The Asian says smirking.

"Thank you" Daryl tells him

"Its nothing, man" Glenn replies

Maggie runs and joins Hershel and Beth. They hug and kiss one another.

I run to my brother. I'm not even close to him when his arms pull me to hug me.

I hug him tightly feeling relieved.

"You little bitch."

His hug hurts me but I'm so happy to see him. I can't help but smile "I thought you were dead. I told you to never leave me again, bastard" He chuckles.

"Can't promise"

"Where's the rest of us?" Lori asks. We let go of each other and look at the rest of the group.

"We're the only ones who made it so far." Rick says

"Shane?"

Fuck Shane!

Risk shakes his head.

"Andrea?" Glenn asks and Carol walks forward

"She saved me, then I lost her."

"We saw her go down." T-Dog says leaning on the truck. His gun still on his hand.

Beth cries harder "they got Patricia too. Took her right in front of me."

"Lucky asshole" Daryl whispers to me pushing my head lightly.

"Too lucky for being me." I respond and think of my coughing fits. Should I tell him?

Rick looks around once more. He looks down and sighs.

"We gotta keep moving. There have been walkers crawling all over here." He says walking to me.

He hands me my revolver. It has blood on it.

I take it carefully. I'll clean it later.

"I say head east." T-Dog talks again. We turn to se a lone walker coming for us.

"Stay off the main roads." Daryl says taking his crossbow from the bike "The bigger the road, the more walkers. more assholes like this one." He shoots and walks to get the arrow from the now dead body on the ground.

Seems like its decided.

We search the nearby cars once more quickly and get on our vehicles. Carol, Lori, Rick and Carl on the Hyundai, Hershel's family, Glenn and T-dog on the Red truck Rick drove from the farm, and we stay on our brother's motorcycle leaving the old blue truck on the road.

* * *

"We're not safe with him keeping something like that from us." Carol says sitting besides Daryl. He looks at me when he hears me cough again.

It makes him frown but he ignores it like I do.

The cars Ran out of fuel a couple of hours ago so we had to stay next to a bridge for tonight.

If the other nights were cold, this one's freezing.

I can't imagine when real winter hits...

Daryl got me a jacket from an abandoned vehicle back on the road. I like it. He got me a hooded leather jacket.

He said it was the most badass jacket he found and he wasn't getting me no Barbie girl shit. I swear those were his words.

I smile when I remember.

The jacket keeps me warm but even like this I'm in pain.

I'm starting to feel weak. Its getting hard to breathe.

Daryl is putting more wood into the fire quietly. I won't bother him.

"Why do you need him? He's just gonna pull you down." Carol insists. I look at her.

I'm not in the mood for this.

"No. Rick's done all right by me." Daryl replies

"You're his henchman and I'm a burden. You deserve better."

Daryl stops. He looks at her annoyed and asks "What do you want?"

"A man of honor."

My brother chuckles in annoyance "Rick has honor."

People whisper things that are barely hearable.

They say they want to go on runs right now until Rick comes and everyone falls quiet.

He's more than angry. He looks at all of them in the eye and says.

"The last thing we need is for everyone to be running off in the don't have the vehicles. No one's traveling on foot. No one is going anywhere."

"Do something." Carol insists making our leader snap

"I am doing something! I'm keeping this group together, alive! I've been doing that all along, no matter what! I didn't ask for this! I killed my best friend for you people, for Christ's sake! You saw what he was like, how he pushed me, how he compromised us, how he threatened us! He staged the whole Randall thing, led me out to put a bullet in my back! He gave me no choice!"

We look at him quietly and in shock. Carl cries and hugs Lori.

Rick keeps going "He was my friend, but he came after me. My hands are clean. Maybe you people are better off without me. Go ahead. I say there's a place for us, but maybe it's just another pipe dream. maybe I'm fooling myself again. Why don't you go and find out yourselves? Send me a postcard." He walks around eyeing us angrily "You can do better? Let's see how far you get. No takers? Fine. But get one thing straight if you're staying."

Strong badass Rick finally comes out? I approve... As long as he doesn't turn into Shane two...

He makes himself the official leader by finishing his speech with one last powerful sentence.

"This isn't a democracy anymore."


	20. Discoveries

**Happy Valentine's (Mid-Season Premiere) Day!**

 **Thank you for reading!**

 **Season 3 episode 01**

* * *

 **One week after the farm incident...**

We came across a neighbourhood and began searching house by house. Lori, Carl, Beth, Hershel, Maggie, Carol and T-Dog stood back in the first house we checked. The one about two blocks away from here.

Rick says we need to do this fast.

I think we still have like another ten to go. Daryl runs down the stairs to the basement while I try to keep up with him.

He lifts his crossbow checking left and right. I get to where he is gasping for air and lean on the wall.

I cough twice as low as I can to not attract any threat that may be around.

He looks down to me with his flashlight. He asks whats wrong.

"Just gimme a minute" I say and take a deep breath for then standing properly. I walk past him and search around.

I feel how he's staring at me. He knows something's not right and he'll figure it out sooner or later.

He always knows when something happens to me. Just like Merle did before him.

I kneel and take a bottle with medicine from behind a pile of empty cans. I set my backpack down and put the container inside.

I clear my throat in an attempt to hold another coughing fit.

"Here" Daryl kneels besides me. He pokes me with a bottle with a little bit of water in it.

I frown and mumble. "Thats all you have left..."

"Better than nothing"

I shake my head and stand up. I walk to the stairs.

I look back to him and ask if he's coming. He sighs and stand up to walk out with me.

* * *

We checked another house.

We walk out of the front door. Its getting dark.

We stopped running completely. I couldn't keep up with my brother.

I feel frustrated. I can usually keep up with his pace and get things done fast.

I am mad with myself.

I don't know what's wrong with me... But I think I know whats going on and I don't like it

Daryl has my bag now.

He took it away from me when he realised I couldn't carry it anymore and made me drink what he had left in that bottle he offered me like three hours ago.

I breathe deeply in and out to try to recover from just doing nothing but walking.

"We should head back." He tells me

"No. I can do this" I take another breath "I can keep going.." I assure him

He looks at me for a moment. He shakes his head and takes the walkie Rick gave him.

He tells Rick to come to where we are. He says something's wrong with me and he doesn't want to push me.

Rick replies he's coming.

We wait for a few minutes for Rick.

My left side is burning so bad...

Rick arrives. He and my brother agree that I'm looking pale.

Glenn just looks concerned.

They keep insisting on taking me back. They say T can cover me until I feel better.

I assure I'm fine.

I convince them to keep going.

* * *

We keep running around getting as many supplies as we can until I cough again.

And again.

And again.

I lean on the wall once more.

This time coughing feels like someone is using a flame thrower inside me. Even my eyes are watery.

Daryl looks at me waiting for it to pass. He's being super patient right now...

Thank you brother...

Suddenly I feel something pop inside me and yelp in pain. I bend holding my torso.

Daryl moves forward to hold me preventing me from ending on the floor

"Hey!" He calls. He sounds worried "what's wrong?!"

I close my eyes tightly waiting for the pain to go away. Nothing.

"Mac!" He insists waiting for an answer and pulling me out of the house to call Rick again. He and Glenn appear in seconds.

"Whats wrong with her?!" Glenn asks looking scared.

"The pressure!" I cry in pain

"What?!" Rick asks getting closer. Daryl puts the bags on the floor to focus more on me.

I cry harder "it burns!"

"Where?!" Daryl asks desperate

"Scar!" I point to my ribs right next to my surgery mark and cover my mouth to start coughing again. I feel like I'm choking.

Daryl lifts my shirt a bit to take a look at my scar.

"I cant see nothing!" Rick says

"Its internal!" Daryl tells him

The three guys are confused.

I gasp for air taking my hand away from my face.

There's blood on my hand. A lot of it.

I look at my brother completely terrified.

Now I can't breathe! I gasp for air desperately.

Daryl gets it. He knows whats wrong with me.

He widens his eyes in shock pulling me up to his chest and picking me up from the ground.

"What the hell? What does that mean?!" Glenn asks alarmed

"Its happening again" Daryl mumbles and starts running back to the house where Hershel is.

* * *

Carol is the first one to see us when Daryl kicks the door open, breaking it and rushing in. I see how her face changes completely.

"Oh my god" she gasps

I feel like I'm about to pass out for the lack of air. I am trying my best to get air into my body but nothing I do is working.

"Where's Hershel?!" Daryl asks super desperate entering the living room to our right.

"He's in the kitchen checking on Lori."

"Well go get him!" He yells and moves back to the hall and directly to one of the empty rooms.

I eye him with a scared look in my eyes.

Am I gonna die?

"Its ok. Its ok." He puts me down carefully on the floor "Just try to breathe"

I can't! I am really trying, you dumb fuck!

I am getting all the air I can inside me! Wanna try yourself?!

No... I'm sorry...

I'm so scared...

Please, brother.

Please help me.

"What happened?" Hershel asks as soon as he comes in.

Daryl explains as fast as he can. He tells him he thinks my lung just collapsed again.

Hershel puts his ear on my chest. "So she coughed out blood?"

"Do you have to ask all this shit?!" Daryl loses his patience but Hershel just looks at him. "Yes! She did!"

"It collapsed. Sounds like it's filling up with blood." Hershel warns moving away from him. "She's dying."

Daryl curses and walk in circles

"Fix it!" He demands getting closer to Hershel with an angry tone in his voice.

I've never heard his voice so broken...

"I can't do nothing with my bare hands. I don't know if the pressure inside her is really blood or air. I don't have the necessary equipment"

Lori and the others watch from the door. I try to keep myself awake.

"What do you need?!" Daryl growls

"I need something sharp and long to help the lung expand again." Hershel says

"Daddy?" Beth calls "I think I found what we need"

Hershel looks at her and walks out of the room.

"Where are you going?!" My brother yells

"I'll get everything ready." The old man responds. "Take her shirt off. I need to do this fast."

* * *

 **NOW**

Crack!

The door breaks and Rick runs in the house.

Carl follows him one way and Daryl and I walk the other.

One more house. One more neighbourhood.

All we do is run looking for food.

According to Lori's pregnancy, it's been a long time since the 'farmageddon'

T-Dog and Glenn stood outside with the group. They'll come in through the back door in the kitchen but we need to make sure the house is clear.

We hear footsteps behind a door and raise our weapons.

They get closer and closer until they stop right by the door.

We wait.

The door opens quickly making us react and aim at the thing...or the man who opened it.

The three of us lower our weapons. It was Rick.

He walks to the kitchen following Carl while we walk upstairs. We hear the group getting in.

Daryl raises his hand signalling me to check one side and he checks the other. I do as he says.

I open the door to one of the rooms and look around.

I look in every corner, every drawer, under the bed.

Nothing.

I hear the crossbow snapping louder than usual and Daryl cursing. I stop doing everything and walk back where he is.

I see an owl on the floor with an arrow through its eye and Daryl trying to fix the crossbow.

"What happened now?" I ask

"Damn bowstring ripped." He says angrily showing me the string "gotta have to look for a new one. Shit!"

"It hit you in the face. Let me check that" I say walking closer when I see he's got a scratch on his cheekbone. The skin around it is bruised "you're always the lucky one" I smile "it could've hit your eye"

"Just leave it. It'll heal." He says and throws the sting to the other side of the room. "Fucking piece of shit. Looked like it could've lasted longer."

He takes the owl from the floor and walks outside of the room and downstairs with the bow on his shoulder like always.

I follow him "I think I have a new one somewhere. Don't die for a bowstring yet."

We walk down the stairs and join the group in the living room. Everyone looks tired and hungry.

We sit at a random space on the floor while my brother pulls the feathers of the bird in his hands and I open my bag to look for stuff to fix his crossbow.

Carl joins too. I look at him and how he opens a can of dog food.

Is he seriously that hungry?

I go back to look for my brother's things.

Rick walks around the room. He looks at Carl and walks over to him.

He kneels, takes the can and reads the label.

I found the bowstring. I show it to Daryl and put it back in the bag so he can fix it later.

When Rick realises its dog food he walks angrily throwing the can across the room.

We look at him quietly but end up in our business again.

No one questions him and he doesn't question us.

This is the Ricktatorship.

"Psst." T-Dog motions to the window.

Walkers.

We take all we can and head out once more

We get on the vehicles. We need to keep moving

* * *

People are reunited around the green Hyundai watching the map and considering options to keep moving.

Beth, Carl and I are watching around in case we see them coming again.

Rick says we got no place left to go.

We are in a bad situation. We have three herds, one south west, one east and one north following us. We're trapped.

The plan was heading north, but the winter and the herd made us change our minds.

Then, we tried south to see two more herds moving closer together.

We saw them this morning. Too much shit for us to risk it.

"What would you say?" Daryl asks Rick "That was about 150 head?"

Glenn shakes his head. "That was last week. It could be twice that by now."

"This river could have delayed them. If we move fast, we might have a shot to tear right through there." Hershel suggests

I shift my weight and keep looking around

"Yeah, but if this group joins with that one, they could spill out this way." T-Dog's voice says.

"So we're blocked." Rick says "Only thing to do is double back at 27 and swing towards Greenville."

"we've done that already." I say

"It's like we spent the winter and half spring going in circles." T-Dog tells him

"Yeah, I know." Our Ricktator says "At Newnan we'll push west. Haven't been through there yet."

"We can't keep going house to house. Need to find someplace to hole up for a few weeks." Hershel reminds us. He's talking about Lori's baby.

"Ok" Maggie says "Is it cool if we get to the creek before we head out? Won't take long. We got to fill up on water. We can boil it later."

"Knock yourself out." Rick replies

"Hey, while the others wash their panties, let's go hunt. That owl didn't exactly hit the spot." Rick nods to my brother's suggestion. Daryl turns to me "lets have a look around"

I follow them.

"Woah..." I say after climbing a hill near the railroad we've been following

"What is it?" Rick asks walking to where I am. He stands besides me in surprise.

Daryl joins behind us "That's a shame. It's full of those things."

"It's perfect." I tell them.

"Go watch the back" my brother commands.

I sigh and roll my eyes. I walk past them and stand my ground again in case I see something.

"We'll take it." Rick says.

* * *

What we found was a prison.

Huge walls, gates, catwalks, weapons and ammo maybe... Who know what could be in there?

Food? Water?

We go back after a while and discuss it with the group.

To be honest we didn't discuss much. Rick said we're going and what Rick says must be done.

We run to the prison avoiding the outer walkers. Rick cuts the barbed wire so we can get in.

Once in the catwalk Glenn and I close the hole with more wire.

A walker gets there and starts biting it. We all jump back.

"Its secure." I say.

"Got it" My brother replies and runs towards a big space that seems to be where vehicles came in.

"If we can shut that gate, prevent more from filling the yard, we can pick off these 'll take the field by tonight." Rick explains.

We look at one another.

Lori has been holding her belly the whole time. How the fuck is she running like that?

"So how do we shut the gate?" One of the guys ask

"I'll do it." I say "I'm the fastest one here"

"You're not going in there alone." Daryl says.

"It's a suicide run." Maggie replies

Glenn nods. "I'll go with her. You guys cover me."

"No." Rick says "No, you, Maggie, and Beth draw as many as you can over there. Pop 'em through the fence. Daryl, go back to the other tower, Carol you've become a pretty good shot. Take your time. We don't have a lot of ammo to waste. Hershel, you and Carl take this tower." He motions what he wants and looks down to me.

"I'll run for the gate. You come with me. Help me close the gate while others kill them."

"Alright"

Everyone nods and move.

"Hey." Daryl stops me and gives me my gun. "Careful." He tells Rick

He nods

"Come on!" The others call the walkers "Hey, come here!" They shout.

Rick and Lori look at each other and we walk out. He closes the door and ask if I'm ready.

"Not really" I mumble "Lets do this."

We run across the yard to the gate. Some walkers notice and start following us.

We shoot some walkers on our way.

The others shoot too. One walker close to me dies with an arrow on his head. I smile.

Nice one, Daryl.

"Watch out!" I pull Rick when I see Carol almost dropped the rifle shooting accidentally. The bullet lands in front of him.

Shit. Really?!

Rick shakes his head.

We look at her and keep running.

We get to the gate.

I push it while he locks it with a chain.

"Come on!" I say nervously just before I feel a bump and look up to see the sheriff putting the chain as fast as he can and locking the gate.

"Rick!" Lori shouts.

We look back and see walkers behind us. Still too many of them.

I gasp "Shit."

"In here." Rick says opening the door to the next tower and pushes me in. He gets in too and closes the door behind us.

We pant. We can hear the undead hitting the door to get in.

We hear Daryl shouting something.

We snort and go upstairs. Out where we can help the others

We shoot killing the infected one by one until they're all on the floor.

Killed twice. Poor bastards.

"Whooo!" I put my arms up and scream. T-Dog responds the same way. He laughs.

I feel excited! We finally have somewhere to stay!

I put them back down and look up to Rick. He laughs

He puts his hand on my shoulder and nods "good job"

I smile "thanks"

* * *

"What is he doing?" I say looking at Rick while sitting on a flipped bus next to the main entrance gate. Daryl walks back and forth behind me looking at the group and keeping watch. "Its the fourth time he checks on the fence"

"Thinking? I guess?" He answers. "He's got a lot to think about"

I sigh. "Yeah... Maybe"

"Hey, a little help here?" We look down to see Carol bringing two plates for us.

I take the objects so Daryl helps her and give one to him when she's up.

"It's not much, but if I don't bring you something, you won't eat at all." She says

"I guess Little Shane over there has got quite the appetite." Daryl says.

Carol and I snort "Don't be mean." She says "Rick's gotten us a lot farther than I ever thought he would, I'll give him that."

"Mm-hm."

"Shane could never have done that." She mumbles while we eat and sighs. She shifts and rolls her shoulders

"What's wrong?" I ask a little concerned. Carol is cool.

"It's that rifle. The kickback. I'm just not used to it." I turn back to Carol

"Hold on." My brother puts his food down and massages her back.

I giggle making him stop.

He clears his throat awkwardly "Better get back."

"No, keep going" I joke

"It's pretty romantic." Carol laughs

I laugh too.

"Want to screw around?" She jokes

"Pfft." He snorts shaking his head "I'll go down first."

He walks in front of us preparing himself to go down ending up in an awkward position with Carol behind him "Even better."

I smile. where's a camera when you need it?

"Stop." He mumbles feeling annoyed and jumps down to catch us.

When we get back to the campfire we hear Beth started singing.

We stand behind them and listen to her.

 _Of all the money ever I had, I spent it in good company._

 _And all the harm ever I've ever done, alas it was to none but me._

 _And all I've done for want of wit to memory now I can't recall, so fill to me the parting glass._

 _Good night and joy be with you all._

I like her voice, it just... Makes me kind of nostalgic.

Maggie joins her.

I see Rick looking from the distance.

 _Oh, all the comrades that ever I had were sorry for my going away._

 _And all the sweethearts that ever I had would wish me, one more day to stay._

Rick comes to where we are. He sits next to Carl and offers some food to Lori.

She takes a little and eats.

Glenn smiles and Hershel just listens.

 _But since it falls unto my lot that I should rise and you should not._

 _I'll gently rise and I'll softly call; good night and joy be with you all._

 _Good night and joy be with you all._

They finish

"Beautiful." Hershel mumbles.

Rick nods. "Better all turn in. I'll take watch over there. Got a big day tomorrow." He points to the truck we were on a moment ago. We look at him and listen to what he's going to say.

"What do you mean?" Carl asks

"I know we're all exhausted. This was a great win. But we've got to push just a little bit more." Harder? I look at the prison while listening. "Most of the walkers are dressed as guards and prisoners. Looks like this place fell pretty early. It could mean the supplies may be intact. They'd have an infirmary, a commissary."

Daryl nods. "An armory?"

"That would be outside the prison itself, but not too far away. Warden's offices would have info on the location. Weapons, food, medicine. This place could be a gold mine."

"Rick." Hershel shakes his head. We look at him "We're dangerously low on ammo. We'd run out before we make a dent."

"That's why we have to go in there" Rick looks at each one of us. "Hand to hand."

We nod.

It may be dangerous but if we do it, we'll be safe. No more problems with walkers.

"After all we've been through, we can handle it, I know it. These assholes don't stand a chance." Rick finishes smiling to Carl.

Carl smiles back to him.

"Come on." He tells me when when he walks past me.

I look at him. Looks like I'm not sleeping tonight.

I put my stuff next to Daryl's and walk to him.

Lori follows Rick. Looks like they have something serious going on. Better leave them alone.

I give them some distance so they can talk a little more private. I'll wait for Rick on the bus

* * *

I watch the walkers for a while. Feels like they're watching us.

I sit on the edge of the truck again and take a deep sleepy breath.

I need some sleep but I think I can hold it.

I guess I wont be able to go with them tomorrow and clear the rest of the place.

Rick and I used to talk more of then when we were back at the farm. Guess he's got some problems to solve now.

"You ok?" I hear him ask and look at him. Did I fell asleep? I didn't realise when he came up here.

"Yeah, I'm just a little tired. Why?."

Rick is still looking into the distance. "Just Asking"

"Alright" I mumble. "I'm ok..." He nods "Are you?"

"I'm..." He looks at me and thinks " good"

I nod and look up to the stars.

I wonder what they would say to us if they could talk. I stand up so I stay awake through the whole night with Rick.

* * *

"What do you think?" I hear Rick saying. I look at all the cells around us following the group.

A walker crashes on the floor in front of us. T-Dog pulls its legs to take it away while I look up to where it came from and see my brother on the second floor pulling more walkers for him.

"Home, sweet, home." Glenn, who's carrying some bags replies to Rick.

"For the time being" Rick smiles

This morning he called Glenn, Maggie, Daryl and T-Dog to clear the inner yard and this cell block. The rest of us stood outside the gate and killed some walkers through it.

"It's secure?" Lori asks holding her belly. I look at her and Rick nods.

"This cell block is."

Hershel walks forward. He looks around too and asks about the rest of the prison

"In the morning, we'll find the cafeteria and infirmary." Rick explains

Beth and I look at each other and then she asks "We'll sleep in the cells?

"I found keys on some guards. Daryl has a set too."

We nod.

"I ain't sleeping in no cage." We look up to Daryl. I smile.

"You afraid of someone locking you in?"

He looks unamused.

"I wonder who would that be!"

"You have your own set of keys"

"I'll take the perch." He says walking to take another walker with his middle finger up for me.

Carl, Beth and I walk into a cell to check it out.

"Come on." Carl says amused

"Pretty gross." Beth says with a smile

"And you never saw Merles room" I mumble

"Eww" Carl laughs "what was in there anyways?"

I smile "you don't wanna know"

"Hey," Beth pokes Carl's shoulder "remember the storage units?"

"Oh those were the real thing"

"Storage units?" I ask curious

"Yeah, back when you and Daryl were..." Carl explains "you know. winter"

I nod. I understand... winter...

"It's actually.." Beth says jumping to the lower bunk bed "...it's actually pretty comfortable. Check it out."

Carl and I walk forward to touch the dirty mattress when Hershel comes into the cell.

"You kids found your cell yet?"

He wants us to leave beth alone. Ok.

"Yup" I reply. To be honest, no, I haven't. But I got a pretty good idea on which cell I want.

"Yeah, I was just making sure Beth was safe." Carl says

"See you tomorrow." Beth mumbles.

"Later." We say and walk out

We start walking once more to choose our cell.

I take the one on the upper right on the cell block. The very last one. I think it's a little more private than the rest.

On my way there I see Daryl laying on the floor with his eyes closed. Looks like today is resting day. No more work until tomorrow.

I snort and get closer to him "you're kidding."

"Does it look like I am?"

"You're ridiculous" I tease him. He opens his eyes and sits looking up to me

"Your ass is ridiculous" he smiles

"Well, at least it's prettier than yours"

"What do you want from me?" He says. "You wanted your own room and privacy back. There you have it, now leave me alone."

I walk back to my cell saying "Alright, dad. Don't get your panties in a bunch."

"Don't ever fucking call me that!" He yells from his spot.

"Got it!"

* * *

I put my bag besides the bed and sit on it to check it. Beth was right. Pretty comfortable to be a prison bunk bed.

I lay on it completely. Its a little dirty...Oh well.

I'm so tired, I don't pay attention to that.

l can finally get some real sleep without worrying.

* * *

I open my eyes gasping and look around... I'm inside my cell...

"Carl?" I ask confused to see him kneeling by the bed looking at me confused.

"Woah..." He says "you're the hardest person I've tried to wake up in my whole life" he mumbles adjusting his hat and standing to give me some space.

I look at him and sit on the bed. I frown. It was all a dream...

Daryl told me to wake you up. He said my dad Is waiting for you to go with them"

"Go with them where?"

"To look for the cafeteria..." He explains while I stand. I take a few steps to look out of the cell.

"Its morning already..." I mumble. "I slept through the whole day..."

"and night...Are you ok?" Carl asks frowning. I look at him and nod.

"Yeah. I'm fine." I tell him. "I just...forget it.."

"Ok. They're waiting for you, so..." he walks out of the cell with me.

* * *

"Flashbangs, CS, Triple-Chasers." I hear Rick saying while I walk out of the cell block.

Not sure how they'd work on walkers, but we'll take it."

"Can we just deal with this and get to the food? I'm starving." I mumble as I walk in.

"Look who finally woke up" T smiles. I give him a still sleepy smile

"Had to recover to save your sorry butts out there, didn't I?"

The rest smile too "you sure will" he laughs sarcastically"

We get our attention back to the weapons they found in here and check on them.

Not much ammo, some stuck weapons... The rest are good, at least they work.

Daryl lifts a riot helmet that has some kind of slime in it. "I ain't wearing this shit."

He tells the rest of us with a grossed out face.

I frown in disgust. Maybe Rick wanted us to wear them.

"We could boil 'em." Glenn suggests

"Ain't enough firewood in the whole forest."

I say "gross"

"Besides, we made it this far without 'em, right?" My brother puts the helmet on the table in front of us and backs away a little when Carol approaches us calling for Hershel. We all look at her.

"Lori need to talk to you" she tells him.

"Everything all right?" Rick asks

"Yeah. Nothing to worry about" she says walking into the cell block with hershel. Rick nods and turns to help T with one of the bulletproof vests.

I think I get him. Even I'm a little worried for her.

"Hey" we hear Carl walking in with us. He put one of the helmets on his head. "I found a clean one"

I laugh. He looks so funny! His head is just too small for it!

"What?" I see a smile behind the helmet. "Too cool for you?" He jokes.

"Nope. But it sure is too big for you"

"I bet it is for you too" T dog says laughing with us. Rick walks over to the table to reload his gun

"You kids just try to make fun of everything." Glenn smiles

Daryl comes closer handing me a flashlight "Quit playing around" he says "we don't know whats waiting for us down there."

I nod "Alright."

"You won't need that. I need you to stay put." Rick mumbles approaching his son and knocks slightly on the helmet

Carl snorts and looks at him like he's not believing his father. He takes the helmet off his head. "You're kidding."

"Daryl's right we don't know what's in there. Something goes wrong, you could be the last man standing." All of us stop playing and joking. "I need you to handle things here."

He's right. Something goes wrong, we're all dead and someone needs to lead the one staying.

Carl eyes his father for a while, then he looks around to us. He takes a deep breath and nods.

"Okay" He murmurs. He's not happy about it.

Rick gives him a set of keys and turns to us. "Let's go."

* * *

Daryl turns the key to the lower levels as quiet as he can, unlocks and opens the heavy gate. Its dark down here so Rick, T, Hershel, Daryl and I have a flashlight to get through the corridors of the prison.

Its like a horror movie set. All the cells are open, dead people laying on the floor, blood everywhere... Some of the corpses have been eaten fully, others still have some flesh, the rest are shot on the head but there's nothing to tell us where the walkers are or what happened to them. We were expecting at least a dozen of them.

Rick walks upfront like always.

As we walk through the corridors we mark an arrow on the wall with each turn we make so we don't get lost in this labyrinth.

We hear Maggie scream behind us and look at her to see what happened.

"Sorry." Glenn whispers. He was behind her when she turned. She wasn't expecting him to be there. We keep moving as quiet as we can behind Rick.

The prison fills with more and more corpses with each turn we make and the smell gets worse and worse.

I don't like this. But I wanted to come, right?

I wonder if the rest are scared too...

We take a moment to check on the cells. See if theres something useful in them.

I honestly think that we shouldn't split up to do that, it makes me even more nervous.

I look around with my flashlight and walk a little further into the corridor.

"Found anything?"

I gasp and turn around. Rick stands there pointing his flashlight like I did a moment ago to see through the dark corridor.

I sigh "don't do that" I whisper to him. He smirks.

"Well...?"

"I think theres something down there..."

"We've cleared more than half of this section. I highly doubt there gonna be any walker." Daryl comes closer and stops besides Rick.

"Don't get your hopes up" the sheriff whispers "We need to be careful in a place this small. They could be gathered somewhere and if thats the case we cant let them come too close to us or none of us will make it." We nod.

I'm still curious. I wanna go check down there.

I feel like the walkers are all gathered in that corner.

I imagine them like:

 _'Hey, you think the living can hear us?'_

 _'Nah, I don't think so, man. Just keep staggering'_

Here comes my childishness!

Anyways, maybe they're by the cafeteria waiting for something to eat.. Or someone...

I wait for the rest to finish with the cells and join us in the corridor. Rick tells us to keep moving.

We walk a few steps when we hear a loud thud. We stop.

To me this is exciting, even though I'm shitting my pants, adrenaline is rushing through my body.

"It came from down there." Maggie whispers

Rick looks at me like he's cursing with his eyes.

Seems like I was right. Theres something down there.


	21. Left Behind

**Two weeks after the farm...**

I've been locked in here for a whole week.

Hershel told Daryl that I cant get out of the room. He says he can't believe I made it out of the farm in this condition

My lung collapsed again five days ago and thats why I started coughing out blood.

Hershel helped me relieve the pressure building in my chest. I'm not so sure how but it hurt like shit.

The last thing I remember is he stabbed me with a long metallic knitting needle.

It was one of the most painful things I've ever experienced. I can't explain the feeling...

Then Daryl lost his mind and T rushed to stop him.

Hershel said we need to wait about two more weeks until I am stronger to move around Georgia again.

The thing is; we don't have two weeks.

I've passed out about four times in this couple days. My left lung is weak, and I've heard the group trying to talk my brother on leaving.

They say I wont make it anyway.

I always have someone with me. Just in case I die and turn.

I can't talk right now. I feel too weak for it.

"Daryl, you need to understand." I hear Lori telling my brother. "The herd is still moving and its only a matter of time until they catch up with us. We need to keep moving"

I open my eyes feeling awful and look at her.

They're right. There are walkers outside. I can hear them.

If the herd catches up with them, no one will survive.

But I'm scared... Of being alone...

Dying all by myself...

Rick is quiet. He's analysing the situation while Lori talks to Daryl.

My brother is sitting on the other side of the room with his back against the wall, biting his lower lip and looking down.

"We've stayed here long enough. Rick gave you more time than we have and she's not getting any better. We need to move."

Of course she thinks a week is more than enough when we gave Carl about a month to get better...

"What do you want me to do, leave her here to die?" He mumbles not making any expression at all.

Rick gets closer to Lori. he puts his hand on her shoulder "He's right. We all waited for Carl to get better. She's not gonna make it if we keep moving around. Maybe we can..."

"No, Rick. We cant. This isn't just about them. The situation outside is getting worse. We're leaving. With or without them. She's not gonna make it. She's a danger to us. We don't know when she's gonna die but I'm not staying to wait for it to happen and take more people with her. We're leaving." She says angrily and walks out of the room to where the others are.

Rick sighs. He turns his head to look at me. We look at each other.

Rick walks to Daryl and kneels besides him. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, I bet you are." He replies angrily with sarcasm in his voice.

"I am, but you know I have to do whats best for the group. For my family..."

"You and I both." Daryl growls looking at him in the eye "Do whatever the fuck you need to do. You ain't changing my mind."

Rick nods. He stands up and says before walking out. "You can join us whenever you're ready. The group is open for you... Both.."

* * *

Hershel enters the room again to check on me.

"Lori wants to leave now" he says while doing so.

"Yeah. Enjoy the ride" Daryl says standing up and walking closer.

"She ain't going nowhere like that." Hershel says "You need to watch her. She won't survive another collapsed lung." We wait until he's done and gets up to face Daryl "We need you with us."

Daryl shakes his head.

"You know it's too dangerous here." He insists. "We're not hunters. It'll take us longer to find food."

"Would you leave one of your girls?"

"Definitely not. I understand your decision, but it's gonna take some time for her to move. Its gonna be hard for both of you."

I cough again.

Both men look at me worried and upset.

"I'm aware of it." Daryl mumbles

"Well, the only thing I can tell you is to keep her hydrated. It'll take time, but she'll heal. I guarantee it."

Daryl nods. "You should go now. People are gonna need you"

"I wish you both the best" Hershel puts a hand on my brother's shoulder.

Daryl nods looking down and the old man walks away.

Not long after that we hear the group leaving. Daryl looks at them from the window.

Then he walks back and sits besides me.

I give him a thankful look for not leaving me.

* * *

We can hear the walkers moaning outside.

It's so cold that we can see our breaths. We're sitting next to each other sharing the only two blankets we have. That's the only thing keeping us warm.

"I cant believe they actually left us." I tell Daryl.

My raspy voice is almost like a whisper. I don't like how I'm too weak to even talk.

"The group will always follow Rick and Rick will always follow his bitchy wife"

"Rick could've said no."

"And risk the whole group? Thats not how it works." I sigh. "He needs to take care of his family and a whole group of random people through winter." Daryl says.

We hear a loud thud on one of the walls and stay quiet for a moment. It seems like a walker fell against it.

After making sure there are no more walkers nearby I say "You should've left with them. You're just risking yourself."

"Don't even start. I'm not leaving you here." He growls annoyed. Theres another pause. "Have some rest. We're moving to the attic first thing tomorrow. We'll be safe there."

I nod and rest my head on his shoulder.

* * *

Now

I don't know where my flashlight is. I dropped it when the herd started following us.

We followed that particular corridor and found about thirty walkers that were attracted by the light.

Right now, they're attracted by the sound of my heavy steps and accelerated breathing.

I'm running alone in the darkness with 'who-knows-how-many' walkers walking as fast as they can behind me. I don't see the point on shooting them. I would just empty my gun before I could kill half of them.

There were so many of them that we got separated.

I'm not exactly sure how it all happened.

I heard a terrifying scream not long ago. Someone must've been bitten.

Fucking shit.

I can still hear the voices of the rest of the group and some sobs so I'm following them. Unfortunately my friends here are doing the same.

I see some light coming through the left corridor infront of me. "Rick!" I shout.

I don't care if walkers hear me, they're all behind me anyway.

I turn and see some of the group kneeling besides Hershel. He's the one who got bit.

T-Dog pokes my brother and nods in my direction. Both look confused to see me so desperate.

"Walkers! Run!" I shout harder getting everyone's attention but Maggie's and Hershel's.

Daryl frowns.

"Run!" I tell them again just when the herd turns the same way I did. "Get him outta here!"

Rick is the first to react "Get him up!" He shouts trying to get Hershel on his feet with T and Glenn.

I get to where they are and pull Hershel up like them. Rick and T are now carrying Hershel and run with Glenn and Maggie following them.

Daryl shoots the closest walker and we run after the group.

Theres so much of screaming from the group and growling from the walkers that we are starting to panic.

Soon we reach the end of the corridor. Just where the walkers were when we found them.

Theres a door blocking our way

"Get it open!" Rick demands holding Hershel, who keeps crying and calling God.

"Hurry!" Daryl yells and turns around "they're getting closer!"

"Got it!" T-Dog opens the doors somehow.

We rush inside.

T and Daryl press their backs on the doors to keep the walkers from coming in when it starts shaking violently and the undead hit the doors.

I look up to see Hershel still screaming.

I hear Daryl curse from the door and look around to see if theres something to hold the doors locked.

I look around until I see a crowbar on the floor. I walk to it.

I take the bar and walk to where my brother is. I put the crowbar between the doors.

He and T sigh in relief.

"Hold him down" Rick suddenly demands and Daryl runs to his side.

Rick strapped his belt tight around the man's leg.

I know what's coming... I tried it with the nurse that helped me out of the hospital just before Daryl and Merle came to get me.

I couldn't save her. She died, bled out to death.

At least she didn't turn. Maybe she wasn't infected yet...

My brothers never knew about her.

"There's only one way to keep him alive" Ricktator says.

Rick grabs a hatchet from his belt and without a warning he starts to chop his leg off.

We stare in horror how Hershel tries to fight against him and screams louder.

Rick hacks again and again until Hershel stops moving.

Looks like he passed out.

Rick swallows hard and keeps going until the leg is off. "He's bleeding out" he adds looking at me even more desperate.

And what am I supposed to do?!

I take off my hoodie and hand it to him while I think of something else. Rick presses it against the leg.

Bye bye hoodie...

I look around once more. Glenn, who's now holding Maggie in absolute horror, brought towels a moment ago.

I take them from him and kneel next to him to add more pressure to Hershel's leg. "I got it" he tells me. I nod.

Daryl moves next to us. Before I can get back on my feet he whispers.

"Duck"

Duck? I am confused. Rick and I look at him trying to figure out what he meant until he hear something to our left.

Daryl aims at whatever is watching us on the other side of the cafeteria.

I turn my head to see whats going on but stay low just in case.

Rick keeps working on Hershel.

There's five figures behind the counter. Looks like some inmates survived after all.

"Holy shit!" one of the prisoners says. He has a funny beard and shoulder long hair.

"Who the hell are you?!" Daryl asks them without moving

"He's bleeding out, we gotta go back!" Rick mumbles. I look at him for a second and then back to Daryl

"Why don't you come on out there? Slow and steady" My brother orders.

The survivors did as they were told, making their way out of the back of the cafeteria. The Latino and a slim African-American came out first.

I don't like the hispanic one. He's the one with a gun and is staring straight at my brother.

He tells one of the guys something in Spanish and then looks back to Daryl.

"You better put that down, Güero" he says.

I don't know much Spanish but I recognise it and know what 'Güero' means. Wouldn't be surprised if he starts calling us 'gringo'

Daryl frowns. He stays just like he was before.

The guy moves his hand a bit. The one with the gun. He lifts it like he's thinking on aiming it to Daryl.

I pull mine out and move next to my brother.

"Whoa whoa whoa. Easy now!" Daryl says backing off a bit.

"Calm down, amigo" I ain't taking any chances after last night's dream. I'm not seeing my brother die again. "Nobody needs to get hurt"

They tell him something in Spanish again. Apparently his name is Tomas. He relaxes his hand and points to hershel with the other one. "What happened to him?" He asks

"He got bit" Daryl answers and the whole group reacts. They look confused.

"Bit?" One prisoner asks.

Glenn suddenly makes his way right through them and heads for the kitchen.

"Do you have any medical supplies?" He asks

"Woah, were do you think you're going?" the biggest guy asks but Glenn ignores him.

The doors start shaking again. The walkers sound angry.

I wonder how are gonna get out of here.

T presses his weight on them again. Just in case.

"Who the hell are you people anyway, apart from this crackpot over there?" Tomas asks eyeing Daryl once more. "I think I know you"

Daryl snorts but stays quiet. A lot of people related to Jesse or drugs in general knew him and Merle. Even if they just saw them once, It could be possible.

"You don't look like no rescue team" the blonde prisoner says.

"If a rescue team is what you're waiting for, don't" we hear Rick, who's busy trying to get Herschel up, say from behind us. "Come on, we gotta go"

I turn my head a little to see what's going on back there.

Rick and Maggie try to lift Hershel up. Glenn comes out of the kitchen running with a trolley table and approaches them.

My mind sings:

 ** _On the first day in prison the asian brought to me..._**

 ** _A table with wheels on its feet_**

Shit, stop it, Mac! Focus.

They place the old man on the table and push it toward the door

"T! The door!" Rick yells.

"Are you crazy?! Don't open that!" A prisoner responds nervously and tries to stop Rick

I place myself in his way and tilt my head slightly "I wouldn't move if I were you..." I growl softly and wait for my group to exit.

"I got this" T says. I can hear how he's killing the small group of walkers that remained in the corridor. I don't know where the rest of the herd is.

The group heads out. Only Daryl and I stay to make sure that the prisoners don't try anything stupid until we hear Rick calling my brother's name

"Come on" Daryl murmurs and places a hand on my shoulder. "Lets head back"

I lower my gun and run out of the cafeteria with Daryl behind me.

* * *

We follow Rick back to the cellblock.

"Stay here with your brother" Was Rick's order once we arrived to the cellblock.

They rushed into the cells with Hershel and haven't come out yet.

Seems like its our job to keep an eye on everything now that Rick is busy and the damn prisoners followed us all the way from the cafeteria.

I am sitting behind Daryl, who positioned himself close to the door. My guns are ready on the table in front of me, as always, just in case.

Daryl puts an arrow on his bow getting it ready to shoot and aims at the dark hallway waiting for the inmates to arrive.

We can actually hear them coming.

Daryl takes a deep breath and then we see the first one entering the hall.

It is Tomas. He seems to be their Rick. Behind him comes the one who spoke Spanish to him, then the huge guy and then the other two. The blonde with funny beard and a smaller black guy.

They look at the hall from top to bottom fixing their eyes on us finally.

"That's far enough." Daryl tells them to stop them since they wouldn't stop walking toward us.

Tomas smirks and points at the door leading to the cells

"Cell block C. Cell 4, that's mine, gringo. Let me in."

Daryl just looks at him. His crossbow ready to kill them if necessary.

I look at them and keep quiet. I'm analysing the situation.

"Today's your lucky day, fellas." Daryl tells them "You've been pardoned by the state of Georgia. You're free to go."

Tomas walks further. I put my hand on my revolver now. I used my beretta enough.

"Well, we'll see about that" he mumbles looking at Daryl head to toe. "What you got going in there?"

"It ain't none of your concern" Daryl says dryly.

Tomas lifts his gun once more pissed by my brother's response. I lift mine too.

"Put the fucking gun down, would you?" I ask him.

"I'm not following orders from no kid" he says without looking away from my brother "why don't you go back to your sandbox? This ain't none of your business"

"You said you know him." I say walking closer "If you do, you must know it is my fucking business"

He looks at me fast and smirks "Hell yes, I know who you are."

"Then stop pointing it at him or you're dead." I repeat firmly.

Daryl raises an eyebrow as a dare sign.

"Chill, man! She's like what? 18? What's she gonna do?" The big guy says "Besides, we're free now, why are we still in here?"

Tomas looks at me.

"Yeah, I gotta check on my old lady." Another prisoner says

"Man's got a point" Daryl tells him looking directly to him with those creepy eyes he has when he threatens someone.

Whatever he does with that gun would be game over to him and maybe his friends too.

Rick wouldn't let them live after killing one of us. Or both.

Tomas glares at Daryl once more.

"A group of civilians and a bunch of psychos who've just broken in to a prison they got no business being in? Got me thinking there ain't no place for us to go." He mumbles.

Daryl walks closer threatening the hispanic even more

"Why don't you go find out?"

"Maybe we'll just be going now" the man with the funny beard says.

"Hey! We're not leaving!" Tomas looks back to him

"You ain't staying either." I say. He changes his gun from Daryl to my head. I dare him with my eyes.

"I said we're not going anywhere, bitch!"

"Drop the gun!" Daryl yells putting his finger on the trigger "now!"

"This is my house, my rules. I go where I damn want!" Tomas yells.

"Put the fucking gun down now!" Daryl yells again.

One of the prisoners eyes Daryl with a creepy look. I can see he's got a shiv in his hand.

Tomas snorts when he sees I notice the other have weapons too.

"Or what?" He asks my brother "You think we're scared of Legolas and his pocket bitch?"

"Hey hey hey hey! Everyone relax! There's no need for this" Rick enters the room just then. He stops next to Daryl.

Rick puts a hand on Daryl's crossbow and presses it down. "Put it down" he tells me.

I lower my revolver slowly.

Tomas looks at Rick now. "How many of you are in there?"

"Too many for you to handle"

Tomas laughs "is that why you sent a redneck and his kid to threaten me?"

Yes, we are rednecks. So what? Not enough for you, bitch?

"Oh shut up, Mexico." I growl.

Rick snorts and shakes his head. I move closer to Daryl, who looks like he wants me to shut the fuck up.

I roll my eyes.

"We work together to keep the rest from danger. And right now you're not exactly girl scouts trying to sell cookies, are you?" Rick asks them

"Why don't you take your wounded guy to a hospital?"

We look at one another. They really don't know what happened...

We frown.

"Hospital?" I ask completely confused.

"How long have you been in that cafeteria?" Rick asks

"About 13 months" the blonde says. "Lost the exact count in 12. That was about three or four weeks ago."

"A riot broke out. Never seen anything like it" the big guy says. The other one nods and talks again

"Like Attica on speed, man."

"Ever heard about dudes going cannibal, dying, coming back to life? Crazy" Tomas asks looking back to his friends. "One guard looked out for us, locked us up in the cafeteria. Told us: 'sit tight', threw me this piece." he shows his gun "Said he'd be right back."

The smallest black guy nods "We were thinking that the army or the national guard should be showing up any day now but.."

Rick sighs. He nods and looks at them like he's feeling sorry "Yeah. Half the population's been wiped out. Probably more."

The prisoners open their eyes wide. They're shocked.

All except for Tomas. He snorts. "You're kidding"

"I'm dang serious"

"Ain't no way."

"See for yourself" Rick points at the door leading outside.

* * *

"Damn this sun feels good"

I smirk at the prisoner's comment. I felt the same the first time Daryl let me out after being locked in an attic half winter.

It does feel nice.

We follow the prisoners to the yard and watch how they stretch and smile.

"Never thought I'd be so happy to see these fences" Tomas joins the others

Rick smirks too and shakes his head slightly

The prisoners walk around eyeing everything carefully like they own the place.

I think they feel like they're gonna just kick us out any moment and they'll have free house for themselves.

Yeah. Sure.

Daryl will wear a dress and a pink bow on his head before that happens.

"You never said. How the hell did you get in here in the first place?" One of them ask.

The prisoner turns around to look at Rick.

"Cut a hole in that fence over there by that guard tower." Daryl replies pointing at the tower.

The prisoners look in that direction they walk a bit to give a better look at it.

Tomas nods.

I move closer to my brother. He smirks and whispers to me."I bet you almost peed yourself when he pointed that gun at you" he teases.

"You were more scared than I was" I whisper back.

"I don't have to mentally slap myself to get my shit together"

"Go fuck yourself"

"Knock it off, you two." We hear Rick mumble. He's looking at us discretely.

"That easy?" I hear Tomas ask and look up to where he and the prisoners are.

That easy what?...

I try to concentrate on them again

Oh! Right, the fence. Well, yeah... It wasn't that hard...

Daryl shrugs "Where there's a will there's a way."

"So" the big one pokes a corpse with his boot and looks at Rick "what is this, like a disease?"

"Yeah" he says "and we're all infected"

Everyone stop what they're doing to look at our leader. Seems like they're not believing it.

"What do you mean infected? Like AIDS or something?" the funny bearded one says

I switch my weight to one of my legs and cross my arms. "No, not exactly"

"If I was to kill you," Daryl explains "shoot an arrow in your chest, you'd come back as one of these things" he points to one of the bodies and keeps going. "It's gonna happen to all of us"

"Ain't no way Robin Hood and Pipsqueak are responsible for killing all those freaks" Tomas says pointing at us

"Must be fifty bodies out here!" One of the inmates say

Tomas comes closer to Rick. Daryl and I watch him in case he tries to hurt him.

"Where'd you come from?"

"Atlanta." Rick says

"Where are you headed?" he goes on

"Nowhere"

Tomas smirks and nods to the right.

"I guess you can take that area down there near the water. Should be comfortable."

Daryl frowns. Rick and I snort.

"We're using that field for crops" Rick tells him

"We'll help you move your gear out."

"Yeah, of course, why don't you take our weapons too?" I say sarcastically earning a slight kick from Daryl.

"We took out these walkers. This prison is ours" Rick says looking into Tomas' eyes.

"Slow down, cowboy" Tomas says angrily and the african-american prisoner moves forward next to the latin guy.

"You snatched the locks off our doors!" He tells Rick angrily.

"We'll give you new locks, if that's how you want it"

The prisoners snort"This is our prison. We were here first."

"We took it, set you free. It's ours. We spilled blood" Rick says firmly coming closer to Tomas.

"We're moving back into our cell block" he growls and comes dangerously close to Rick.

"You'll have to get your own" our sheriff says

"I ain't going back in that cafeteria for one more minute."

"You could leave"Daryl, tells him."Try your luck out on the road."

Tomas looks at both of my group members and notices that theres no point in arguing. He turns away from rick and backs off telling the other inmates."If these pussies can do all this, least we can do is take out another cell block for us"

"With what?"

"How stocked is that cafeteria? It must have plenty of food. Five guys lasting a year?"

"It sure as hell don't look like anybody's been starving" Daryl mumbles

"There's only a little left" Tomas replies

"We'll take half. In exchange, we'll help clear out a cell block."

"Didn't you hear him? There's only a little left!" The prisoner with the shiv approaches Rick too fast for my liking. I point my gun at his head. He stops

"Don't even think about it". I tell him

Rick tells me to put my gun down. Daryl looks at me trying to figure out whats in my mind.

"Drop it." I order the prisoner. He looks at me with a threatening look. "The shiv. Drop it now."

I hear how the weapon falls on the ground. Rick and Daryl look at it.

I lower my weapon.

Rick smirks and looks at Tomas in the eye once more "Looks like you got more food than you got choices" he says "You pay, we'll play. We'll clear out a block for you, then you keep to it."

We wait for his answer. It is quiet for a while, but eventually he thinks about it and replies

"All right"

"Well" Rick says ending the deal "let's be clear. If we see you out here, anywhere near our people, if I so much as even catch a whiff of your scent, We will kill you."

Tomas looks at his group.

He looks at us carefully, then he speaks.

"Clear"


	22. Daryl

**One month after the farm.**

I entertain myself by watching my breath just like the other night and trying to make it form things.

I smile. its been weeks since the group left us and I'm still alive. I can walk around the house without gasping for air.

I'm starting to feel better.

Take that Lori!

Daryl is out hunting while I'm up here in the attic.

I make weird sounds with my mouth sometimes to see how walkers down there react. I am careful and try to not attract them, just confuse them.

It works pretty well. It makes me laugh sometimes when they fall on each other.

I keep my brain active by making basic stories about them in my head, I draw stickmen on the walls using my bowie knife so it stays sharp.

I draw a comic about Daryl Stickman and his giant squirrel-steed conquering Georgia.

Dialogues included. I guess this is what boredom does.

I look through the window and see a flare rolling on the other side of the street. All the walkers turn and walk to it.

Daryl's coming back.

I'm glad to see he came back safe. If it wasn't for him I would be dead now.

I move away from the window and wait for him so arrive. I hug him as soon as he climbs up.

* * *

 **Now**

Beth is still depressed.

To be honest I don't blame her. Her dad was bit, Rick chopped his leg off, he could die any moment now and we dont know if the infection did spread through his body.

Carl and I are sitting besides Beth. We're trying to comfort her somehow with our presence since we both were told to stay here.

Carol is talking to Glenn right in front of us. It looks like its something serious.

I wonder what it is

She convinces him to something and then she looks at us.

She comes and tells me that they have something to do that is important. She asks me if I could please join Lori in the cell to check on Hershel.

I nod.

To be honest, No. I hate Lori.

Hell I hated almost everyone in here for leaving us to death!

I dont wanna come close to Lori ever again...

But...If it's important...

I tell Beth I'll be right back and walk over to Lori. I sit besides her and look at Hershel on the bed. He seems peaceful right now, but is he really?

"How is he?"

"I don't know" Lori mumbles absently "Carol stopped the bleeding and he hasn't showed any symptoms of infection spreading but I really can't tell. He lost too much blood"

I nod

She looks distracted. Or maybe uncomfortable.

She looks down on her belly and rubs it gently with her right hand.

There's silence around us. The only thing that can be heard is Hershel's raspy breathing until Lori speaks again.

"I'm sorry"

I look at her confused "sorry?" Is that all she has to say?! Sorry?!

"You and Daryl spent the winter all alone out there. One of you could've died and its all my fault. I am so sorry about that"

"Well, I was dead anyway, right?"I say with a sarcastic and hateful tone in my voice. "By the way, do you think hershel has time to heal? Or we need to kick him out too?"

Lori looks at me with wide eyes. She blinks a few times and then looks down.

I think I understand why she did that. Maybe she thought it was the best chance for the group, but I still blame her.

Theres silence in the cell again.

"Rick just keeps blaming me for it." She says with a barely hearable voice and looks back to her belly.

"I wonder why"

"He spent all winter trying to find a way of going back to get you and your brother back and when he finally had the chance to get near the place again it was full of them. He kept reminding me that...Every night, he even told me I killed you both and your blood was on my hands..." She mutters.

I knew all that already. Rick told us when we finally met again.

Lori looks at me.

"I don't blame you if you hate me." She says "Rick avoids any kind of conversation with me. Specially when its about the baby."

"Rick knows who's is it?" I ask

"W...what?"

"your kid. Rick knows it is Shane's?"

Lori scoffs. We look at each other with angry eyes.

"It is Rick's" she says "I dont even have to give you any explanation for this"

Fuck this...

"No, you're right. Everyone knows how it works. Plus, you're the one who brought the baby into the conversation. Maybe Rick has the right to be mad, dont you think?"

Lori tightens her jaw and looks down. There's clearly nothing else to say.

I have nothing else to talk about the baby.

I dont care if it Shane's or Rick's. I just know Rick wants it and thinks of it as his own so I will try to keep it safe.

I look in Hershel's direction.

Lori sighs.

* * *

I'm taking my stuff out of my bag. I think, if we're staying here, its gonna be for a long time, so I want to organise my stuff a little.

I sit on the floor inside my cell to dig my bag and take out its contents. I throw whats not so important to the bunk bed.

I'll fix those things later and find them a place.

I take a shirt, my leather jacket, more shirts, and two more pairs of jeans. I throw them to the bunk bed.

I need to find more clothes. All but the leather Jacket have wholes or scratches on them.

Note to self: go on a run with Daryl to new get stuff.

I look back into my bag. The clothes take most of the space in there...

I pull out a bunch of trash. Empty cans, for example...

I cant wait for the guys to bring the food...

I find an old photo in bad shape. I don't remember putting it there.

Its me, Merle and Daryl.

My brothers are holding a deer. Merle has a hunting rifle and Daryl his crossbow on their backs. I look excited.

I remember this moment. It was the first time they took me out for hunting. I look so small...

I take a deep breath and smile slightly putting it back inside my backpack but this time in a safer place.

I take the box of 9mm bullets I got from my brother back at the CDC. It's still full of bullets for my .50 revolver.

Truth is that I almost never use it. Its too noisy.

I'm honestly in love with my suppressed beretta.

I put the bullets and the guns on the floor besides me so I can take out more stuff and get my shit together.

It's incredible how much stuff I carry every day and I still have some space to get supplies.

Next I take my Bowie Knife. I pull the blade cover away to see if it's still in good shape.

I'm about to touch it to see how sharp it is when I hear Beth shouting and Maggie calling for help.

I rush out of my cell and down to help them.

Lori is there checking Hershel's pulse. I look at them in confusion with my knife still in my hand.

Carl arrived behind me. He looks at 'em too waiting to see what happens.

Lori is doing the CPR thing to him. Is he dead?

She shouldn't be that close to him.

She keeps going until Hershel wraps his arm around her without a warning.

Beth gasps scared when Maggie and Lori shout. I gasp too and Maggie pulls Lori away from Hershel towards us.

I place myself in front of them with my knife up in case he's turned and tries to attack us.

The old man falls back on the bed exhausted. He starts breathing normally again.

We are all super scared. Carl even took his gun out aiming it at Hershel the way I did with my knife.

I lower my weapon.

That was a close one...

* * *

I am sitting on my bed just after finishing with the mess I made taking everything out my back pack.

I think about all that's happened today..

Who would've thought that I would live in prison and point my gun at some random prisoners who happen to know Daryl while a cop chops a veterinarian's leg off because an infected corpse bit him.

I really thought he was attacking Lori...

The whole thing is messed up.

I hear the sound of keys echoing through the cell block and then a rusty door opening.

"Food's here!" T-Dog announces.

I am excited! I'm starving!

I walk down the stairs looking at everything.

Everyone's carrying bags and boxes of food. I watch them feeling amused.

"What you got?" Carl asks the guys. Seems like he's as excited as I am

"Canned beef, canned corn, canned beans..." T-Dog replies and heads for one of the many empty cells to store the supplies.

"Canned cans?" I joke.

"Inside cans" he laughs

Dog tells me to catch and throws something in my direction.

I look at the small bag in my hands.

Cookies? And they're still edible!

I open the package fast and put a whole cookie in my mouth. I smirk enjoying the flavour of chocolate.

"There's a lot more where this came from" I see Rick coming with a triumphant smile.

I smile back. Putting the cookies away for now.

I look around and frown. "Where's Daryl?" I ask

"In the hall. He's keeping an eye on the inmates"

I nod. I follow him

"So, whats the next step?"

Rick stops and turns to me like he's not getting it. He puts his hands on his hips like he does sometimes. "'whats the next step?'"

"You don't think I'm staying here again, do you?" I say.

He chuckles shaking his head. "You're not the waiting type are you?"

"Nope"

Rick sighs and looks down "I don't think you should come"

"Why?"

"We're clearing the lower levels completely with some guys we don't even know. One simple mistake and we're all gone."

"Exactly!"

"this ain't a job for kids.!"

"Job for kids?" I ask angrily "I'm sorry, It's not Carl we're talking about. I survived all winter without you remember?"

I eye him with a serious look while lowering my voice so others don't listen but at this point I can feel some stares down to us. Including Lori's.

I see Daryl entering the cell block behind Rick. He's looking from the distance. Kinda like analysing the situation

Rick says " You saw what happened to Hershel. What do you think Daryl would do to me if something happens to you?"

I growl and look back to Rick. "He wont do nothing! Nothing will happen to me! You don't know that shit."

Daryl comes closer.

Rick seeps talking "You don't know that either! You're both important for the group so the least I need is a problem out there."

I walk closer to Rick.

"I just saved your ass from being stabbed by a prisoner a few hours ago. You and Daryl didn't even notice the shiv. I ain't letting y'all go alone."

Rick just looks at me. He keeps quiet while Daryl puts a hand on his shoulder.

"I got it" he tells him looking at me with his angry blue eyes.

Rick nods.

I growl while Daryl takes my arm tightly. I realise he told Rick to not let me come...

We walk past Rick heading Outside.

I am annoyed. Why would he do that?

Daryl doesn't seem happy at all. He's mad at me for not listening to Rick.

We walk out of the cell block.

He just glares at me in a way that makes me feel more angry.

He's the one who got Rick involved cause he didn't have the balls to tell me he wants me to be locked in here like a dog!

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" He asks me.

"What kind of fucking pussy are you? You cant tell me things yourself no more?"

"Don't even think on talking to me like that." He growls leaving me between him and the wall.

I frown "well, Whats wrong with me? Listen to you! You're talking like the old man now!"

"you were acting like a fucking asshole down there! Ya' don't yell at Rick for what happened"

"He has to speak for you? You don't have a mouth?"

"I just don't want you near those prisoners!"

"And you told our leader to stop me cause you're fucking scared. Great idea!" I say sarcastically

"You want a bullet in between your eyes?! Huh? That what you want?!" He shouts

"Like you ain't picking up fights all the time! Who's the one always going macho on me?"

He frowns. His deep eyes trying to intimidate me.

"What's that got to do with it?!"

"You talked him into not letting me go with you. You know I hate staying here to do nothing. Thats being an over protective Macho, don't you think?"

"Rick and me are trying to get things under control with these guys, get them away from us and get things in return! Don't you get it?!"

"What, You his bitch now?!"

"I ain't nobody's bitch!"

"Yeah. Of course not."

"all I'm asking is for you to be safe for once and stay here! is that hard to do?!" Daryl yells once more trying hard to contain himself.

We're just yelling at each other like a bunch of assholes... I hate it...

It's all... "Bullshit!"

"You're the one doing and talking bullshit here! you're a fucking Drama queen!"

"And you're a goddamn coward! You think you can boss me around like Merle did?!" I shout

"you don't bring up Merle into this!"

"You're not even half the man Merle was!"

He punches the wall next to me in a desperate attempt to not hurt me in an anger fit. He gets even closer to me and screams one last time

"Merle's gone!"

"I know!" I reply the same way. I tighten my jaw and lower the tone in my voice so he stops yelling at me. "I know he's gone and It ain't fair..."

We glare at each other for a while.

Daryl takes his fist away from the wall. He sighs and shakes his head.

"Well I'm sorry for being here instead of him, princess!"

"Daryl, I never said that..."

"The world ain't ever fair." He turns to leave but stop at the entrance of the cell block. "Never has been, Never will be. Get over it."

He tells me to do 'whatever the fuck I want' and walks in.

I take a deep breath and look down.

Shit.

* * *

Carol and I talked after me and my brother had a fight.

I told her I just want the group to be safe. That I want to be useful.

I hate fighting with my brother. I feel so bad, so guilty every time I do it...

I even brought Merle into the fight. He's something we don't talk about.

I feel frustrated.

"He wants this group to be safe as well" Carol told me. "I think he just don't want to risk you more than He already did. From what he told me, he's almost lost you Two times now. I'm sure he's just trying to avoid a definite one."

Maybe she's right.

I almost lost him once too. I'm trying to avoid losing him like Merle.

It's been almost a year and I still haven't got over it completely...

* * *

I think of what Carol said and walk in the hall where the inmates are in front of Daryl, Rick and T-Dog.

They're all gathered around a table so they could hand out weapons.

I take a deep breath and try to concentrate. I don't feel like getting close to Daryl or Rick so I just walk near T-Dog.

He gives me a small smile. I smile back and stand next to him.

There are all sorts of pipes, knives, crowbars and baseball bats lined up on it, and each prisoner has a weapon except for Tomas.

"Why do I need this when I got this?" he asks ignoring my presence and showing his gun with a proud grin.

"You don't fire guns," Daryl tells them while glaring at each of them "not unless your back's up against a wall. Noise attracts them"

Tomas raises an eyebrow. He looks at my holster and asks "Then why are you caring guns?"

"We all do. You never know." Rick explains "We'll go in two by two. Daryl will run point with Mac" Daryl looks over to me. I can tell he's still mad at me... I look down.

Rick keeps going and gives Andrew, the prisoner who held a shiv before, a slight nod. "I'll bring up the rear with T"

I look up to them.

I don't trust that guy... He's holding an axe now.

"Stay tight, hold formation. No matter how close the walkers get, anyone breaks ranks, we could all go down. Anyone runs off, they could get mistaken for a walker, end up with an axe to the head" Rick explains pointing at his head. "Thats where you aim. These things only go down with a head shot."

"Ain't gotta tell us how to take out a man." Tomas responds

I wonder if he knows from experience

I glare at him but stay quiet. Tomas gives us an evil smirk.

"They ain't men." T says "They're something else."

"Just remember to go for the brain" Rick reminds them and waits for us to move.

Daryl walks to where I am. He tells me to start moving and pushes me slightly with his elbow since he's holding the crossbow.

I walk by his side quietly.

Daryl and I walk up front. He's walking to my left.

He's still mad at me.

Daryl looks to me every now and then but I try to ignore it. He whispers to me telling me to look around the next corner.

I walk faster and look through the corridor he said.

"Clear" I tell him and wait for them to get to where I am.

"Man, it's too damn dark in here" Oscar complains and Rick hushes him.

Daryl stops walking and looks at the big prisoner with an axe in his hands.

"Gotta hold it up high, out in front of you" he says "You're gonna hear them before you see them"

We walk to a corner and hear a walker growling just like Daryl said.

"It's coming!" I hear axel yell

"dude" I hiss and glare at him. I raise my finger to my mouth in a 'shhh' signal.

I can see how sacred he is. He's shaking.

I keep walking in front of them.

Daryl moves a hand up telling us to wait. When did he become the leader?

We can hear the walkers very close to us. Then we see a shadow and then two walkers that notice our presence and start walking towards us.

I lift my knife to kill the undead but Daryl stops me.

"Let them do it." he mumbles and turns to nod at the prisoners.

He lifts his hand to count with his fingers but the prisoners run to the walkers before he can even raise the second one.

Daryl backs up against the wall pulling me close to him before they have a chance to push me aside. He looks at the prisoners carefully and takes his hands away from me.

The prisoners yell and swear loudly while attacking the walkers.

Rick and T get closer to us to look at them do their random stuff with a confused frown.

What the actual fuck?

Stabbing their torsos over and over again, beating them and holding them back is not gonna do nothing! They're just gonna attract more walkers.

We watch them until Rick walks forward and kills one of the walkers and shakes his head angrily. Daryl shoots an arrow to one's head.

* * *

"It's gotta be the brain" Daryl reminds them when we get to another corner where we hear them "Not the stomach, not the heart, the brain" he says and shooting the first walker.

Oscar is the first to step forward. He bashes the head of the next walker in and steps back quickly.

"Like that?" he asks and Daryl nods

"Yeah"

Axel takes his crowbar tightly and walks forward to stab the next one

I try to walk forward to kill the next one but Daryl stops me again.

"Not yet." he mumbles once more and pulls me closer like he did before so I have no chance to move.

I pull my arm away from him and look at him with a frown.

Rick goes next. He kills the next walker and steps back saying.

"Stay in tight formation. No more prison riot crap. No more one man jobs"

More and more walkers enter the hallway. I turn to my brother. "Now?" I ask impatiently.

"Go ahead" He says

We start killing the undead.

I look at Tomas. He's looking at Daryl in a way that makes me uneasy.

He stabs another walker and says something in Spanish. All I got was 'gringo' again.

They're talking about Daryl.

"No." Andrew replies " 'mejor'..." He pauses and nods to me.

What does that mean? What does 'mejor' mean?!

We keep killing the remaining walkers until the man turns and swings his axe toward me.

I see him and jump back before it hits me.

"son of a bitch! What the fuck?" I yell at him.

I look down to check if the bloody infected axe touched my skin. I seem to be fine.

My brother turns to see what happened.

Tomas looks somewhere else like nothing happened and kills another walker while Daryl looks in my direction to check on me.

He now looks at Tomas, who's staring directly into his eyes. My brother looks like he's about to kill him.

Rick puts a hand on his chest to stop him from doing anything stupid. "You alright?" He asks me.

I nod.

We hear Big Tiny Screaming in pain.

We run to where he is.

Rick runs to kill the walker munching on Big T's back when Tomas raises his gun behind our leader and shoots two times before we can even react.

The walker falls on the ground.

We look at him in surprise.

I thought he was gonna shoot Rick...

Daryl keeps glaring at Tomas with hatred.

"Turn around." Rick demands turning to look at Big Tiny.

"It's just a scratch" Tiny murmurs trying to catch his breath.

Rick puts a hand on his shoulder and turns him himself.

The other prisoners look at the man's shoulder like us. There's a big bloody scratch and his clothes have been ripped next to it.

He turns around again to face Rick with wide eyes.

"I'm telling you, I don't feel anything. It's just a scratch"

Rick sighs looking down to the ground.

"I'm sorry, man."

"I can keep fighting!" the prisoner insists.

"It doesn't matter. You got in direct contact with them." I tell him "As soon as it enters your blood stream you're dead. There's nothing we can do."

"You cut that old guy's leg off to save his life" Andrew protests

Our leader points at the prisoner with his flashlight growling. "Look at where the bite is. Like she said, nothing we can do."

"No!" Tiny yells trying to argue again. " I'm fine! Just...I'm fine"

"Look, there's gotta be something we can do. We could just lock him up!" Oscar suggests.

"Quarantine him!" Axel joins in.

Rick shakes his head

"We gotta do something. Why are you just standing there and laugh your ass off? We gotta save him!" Andrew shouts

"I told you, theres nothing we can..."

Tomas hits Big Tiny's head with the axe.

We look at Tomas startled.

He looks at us for a second.

I gasp when he starts smashing the unconscious man's head in a super violent way until he's covered in blood and trying to catch his breath.

I feel my blood running cold.

I look at Rick. This guy can't live close to us or someone is gonna end up dead.

Theres nothing left of Tiny's head. Only pieces of his brain, eyes and tongue here and there.

Seems like no one is believing what just happening

Why isn't Rick doing something about him?

"We keep moving or what?" The hispanic asks Rick with a look that none of us like.

Rick nods.

* * *

We kept walking after all that happened.

Rick told Daryl and I to walk behind the group this time.

After a while he waits for everyone to walk past him and positions himself by our sides.

"You ok?" He asks me whispering "That axe has walker blood on it."

"It didn't touch me" I tell him

"She'll be fine." Daryl mumbles "she wanted to come after all."

I look at him with a frown.

"Alright" Rick replies and is about to walk faster when my brother calls him.

"You saw the look on his face back there?" Rick nods "He makes one move, just give us a signal."

We get inside a washing room. The prisoners wait by the door leading to another set of corridors for the next cell block.

We hear walkers in the other side.

Rick throws his keys in Tomas' direction. He looks at them. "I ain't opening that."

"Yes, you are." Rick demands "If you want this cell block, you're gonna open that door. Just the one, not both of them. We need to control this."

Tomas rolls his eyes and takes the keys from the floor.

He walks over to the door and unlocks it.

"You bitches ready?" He asks looking at us. He pulls the door but nothing happens.

He tries again. Nothing.

Is it stuck or something? Is he not pulling enough?

"I got this." He says.

He pulls both doors now letting all the walkers in.

"I said one door!" I hear Rick yell and start killing the walkers that get close to me.

"Shit happens." The prisoner replies.

I hold a walker and stick my knife into its head but suddenly I hear a loud wood thud behind me.

I turn to see what happened.

Rick is pushing Tomas' axe away from me.

He tried to hit me with it again but Rick stopped the object with his machete.

I look at my leader surprised by how close the bloody axe was from me. Rick nods to me and starts eyeing Tomas angrily.

Tomas pulls a walker and shoves it against Rick. He falls back grunting.

"Rick!" I yell

"T, mind the gap." Daryl shouts running towards the walker and taking it before I even have a chance to do anything but kill another nearby undead.

T kills the last walker while I see how my brother helps Rick up.

Rick walks closer to Tomas. He shrugs.

"That was enough." Rick says super angry.

"Sorry." The prisoner replies "It was coming at me, bro."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." Rick nods "I get it. Shit happens."

Tomas nods.

We look at how they want to kill each other with their looks.

Rick takes a deep breath and lifts his machete

"No!" Andrew yells running towards the sheriff but Rick hits the other's head cutting it in half before anyone reacts

Tomas falls on the ground dead.

Andrew tries to attack Rick now with his bat but Rick kicks him away from him.

Andrew falls back letting go of his bat.

Daryl reacts instantly when Axel and Oscar try to move as well.

Daryl points his crossbow at Oscar, T-Dog does the same pointing his gun to Axel.

"Easy now" my brother growls

Andrew gets back to his feet and glares at Rick in horror. I walk forward in case he tries to attack him. Then he suddenly starts running.

I curse letting my knife fall on the ground and run after him while pulling my revolver out.

"Mac!" I hear Daryl yell and Rick reply

"I got her!"

* * *

The corridors are an endless maze. I try to keep up with the prisoner and get him trapped as fast as I can. Its hard to see a thing and I can hear Ricks heavy footsteps behind me.

I lose the prisoner and lower my speed a bit until I hear a door opening to my left.

"Mac!" Rick calls me once more. Sounds like he's a few feet behind me.

I open the door and Run through the dining hall of cell block D.

Andrew is still running in front of me.

He opens another door and rushes out. I follow him but stop when the prisoner runs past the grille.

The yard is full of walkers.

I walk a few steps back when Rick enters behind me "Stop" I say putting my hands on his stomach

He analyses the situation and steps further forward. He takes the grille and closes it fast when he sees the prisoner trying to come back in and away from the walkers.

I stand behind him watching how the prisoner begs.

"Let me back in, man! Let me back in!" he yells widening his eyes. The walkers look at him thanks to all the noise he's making.

I observe all that's going on from behind Rick but don't try to stop him or anything. I was trying to trap him and shoot him for attacking Rick, but this is even better in a way.

"You better run" I hear Rick say. Andrew screams and turns to run while the sheriff turns to me.

He tightens his jaw and nods. I only look at him and turn to leave when he puts his hand on my shoulder.

We walk back in and close the door behind us on our way back. I hear how the screaming outside stops and take a deep breath.

We walk back to T-Dog and my brother.

When we finally get back to the rest of the group they look at us in confusion. I walk next to my brother.

He looks at Rick confused. He knows we killed the prisoner.

He looks back to me and then looks back to the prisoner kneeling in front of him

"Lets end this now" he tells my brother. Daryl is about to pull the trigger when Axel yells.

"Sir, please! Please, listen to me! It was them that was bad. It wasn't us!"

Rick seems super angry and bloodthirsty... He walks closer to T pulling his gun out and aiming it at Axel, who starts crying and pleading right away. "Oh, that's convenient" He growls making it clear that he's about to pull the trigger.

"Rick!" I stop him. He looks at me pissed. "He's not dangerous"

"Not dangerous?" he asks

My brother calls me. He wants me to shut up.

"We killed three of them already. I mean, come on, the guy's a whining baby. Just look at him. These are not the bad guys"

"Come on, man" T mumbles to him.

"How do I know he's not like Tomas?" Rick asks me.

I nod towards the prisoner. Isn't it obvious?

Rick looks at the crying man that pleads one more time "You saw what he did to Tiny. He was my friend. Please, we ain't like that. I like my pharmaceuticals, but I'm no killer. Oscar here, he's a B and E and he ain't very good at it neither. We ain't the violent kind, they were! Please, I swear to God! I wanna live!"

Rick thinks for a moment then he turns around and points his gun at Oscar instead.

"What about you?"

"I ain't never pleaded for my life. And I ain't about to start now. So you do what you gotta do" Oscar says. Daryl nods slightly a few times and looks at Rick in approval.

The prisoner looks at Rick in the eye.

Rick shakes his head and lowers his gun. "Cell block D it is." He says.

I walk over to Axel and offer a hand to help him up. He shakes his head but takes it.

"Thank you" he sobs. I smile softly and help him up.

Once Daryl opens the door Rick shoves Axel inside cell block D. The prisoner looks at all the bodies on the ground.

He and Oscar look around in horror.

"Oh, man" Oscar says as he enters the cell block as well.

"I knew these guys" he says with shaky voice. "They were good men"

All the corpses still have their hands handcuffed and are all in a perfect row. They were executed the day of the outbreak

"Let's go" Rick mumbles and starts walking. Oscar looks at us frowning.

"So you're just gonna leave us in here? Man, this is sick."

"We're locking down this cell block." Rick stops and looks at them. "From now on, this part of the prison is yours. Take it or leave it. That was the deal" Then he startswalking back. "Consider yourselves the lucky ones."

Daryl and I look at each other. Suddenly I feel sorry for these guys.

"You think this is sick?" Daryl asks Oscar. "You don't wanna know what's outside."

"Good luck" I mumble and head out but stop and look back when I notice my brother is not coming.

"Sorry about your friends, man" he tells them in a respectful way and starts following us.

* * *

Today was a good day. We have food, water, a safe place to live...

Also Hershel woke up. We were all there when he did.

He's not turning into one of them and may be moving around as soon as he feels better.

Daryl and I are watching around the prison in one of the guard towers.

He Accepted my apologies for telling him all that about him and Merle and seems to not hate me so much after all.

he's right, I'm a drama queen. He hates drama and I feel so stupid for reacting like that...

"you're an asshole" he said chuckling

We make fun of Glenn and Maggie, who are in another tower.

Who knows what they're doing, right? No one suspects nothing.

The rest of the group are sleeping inside the cell block. They deserved it.

Today was a good day.


	23. Blood on my hands

**Two months after the farm**

Hershel was right. I got better.

For the past weeks Daryl's been looking better too.

His eyes used to look tired.

He barely slept at night even if I told him that I'm alright and we're safe, but now he's returning to his true self.

Grumpy ass redneck ready to stomp your ass.

He's been bitchy with me because I want to go out with him.

I think we'll be moving away from here soon anyway. Theres no more food around and there's more and more walkers every day.

I go down the stairs when I hear a dog screaming. Daryl tries to stop me but I go anyway.

I walk down the stairs as fast as I can with Daryl behind me.

When I open the door the dog is struggling with two walkers. Its paw has a clear bite mark.

"Stop." Daryl whispers grabbing me from behind. He points to the dog "Its been bit"

"Do something!" I say fighting to help the animal "You cant just let them eat it!"

Daryl takes his crossbow aiming to shoot the undead and save the dog when one of the walkers grab the dog and bite its back, another one bite its neck when it turns to attack the first walker. The dog cries in pain.

"Daryl, do something!" I yell desperate.

"It's too many of them" he says putting down his weapon and pulling me into the house when we see the whole neighbourhood reunited for puppy feast.

Daryl closes the door and sits on the staircase with me in his arms to keep me from going out.

This is just traumatic.

The dog's cries are horrible. They creep us both out.

"I'm sorry" Daryl says without letting me go.

* * *

 **Now**

"Mac, wake up" I hear Daryl say.

I moan and roll hoping he lets me sleep more.

"Wake the fuck up! We ain't got all damn day!" He says hitting my arm with his hand. I sigh and open my eyes to look up to him. "Come on, Rick is waiting for us." He says getting his crossbow in place on his back.

"Coming" I sit on the floor and stretch my back by lifting my arms as high as I can.

When did I fall asleep?

"Okay, let's get the other cars in. We'll park them in the west entry of the yard" Rick announces when I close the tower door and run to them. He looks at me with a frown. "Weren't you in the cell block?"

I shake my head.

"Ok, then. I want you back once we get the vehicles in. Lori may need some help with hershel."

"Alright" I say

Rick starts walking. We follow him while he keeps going. "After that, we need to load up these corpses so we can burn them."

"Gonna be a long day" T-Dog murmurs

Rick nods "Yeah. We'll get the others here as well. We'll get firewood first, after that we're gonna pile them up."

"Where's Glenn and Maggie?" I hear carol ask and turn to look at her. I didnt realise she was here.

Fuck, I'm still half asleep.

"We could use some help" she says.

I point at a guard tower closer to the cell block. "In that guard tower."

"Guard tower?" Rick asks and looks at the tower.

"They were out here too?"

Daryl snorts "Yeah. Kept their light on for a while last night. Stood inside the whole time."

Carol and T-Dog smile. I chuckle while Rick raises an eyebrow.

"Glenn!" Daryl calls "Maggie!"

'Get a room, you two' is just not enough for them. Its funny.

We wait for a while until Glenn comes out half naked.

I try to contain my laughter.

Daryl shakes his head when we see he's struggling to get his pants back in place and with his hair all over the place.

We all laugh.

"Hey, what's up, guys?" He shouts

Daryl asks chuckling "You coming?"

"What?" Glenn yells one more time

"You coming?" Daryl repeats "Come on, we could use a hand"

"Coming!" he replies and we laugh more.

The day is starting good. I hope it stays that way.

* * *

"Are you serious? You want them living in a cell next to you?" Rick ask us.

We encountered the prisoners just after Daryl called Glenn. They don't want to stay in their cell block.

"They'll just be waiting for a chance to grab our weapons." Rick tells T because he wants us to listen to them. "You want to go back to sleeping with one eye open?"

"I never stopped." T-Dog replies.

I don't know what to think. I already saved them once and got in a fight with Daryl while doing so.

"Bring them into the fold. If we send them off packing, we might as well execute them ourselves. Right?" T asks me.

I shrug.

"I don't know. Axel seems a little unstable." Glenn mumbles

"After all we've been through? We fought so hard for all this, what if they decide to take it? It's just been us for so long." Carol says

"They're strangers." Maggie mumbles "It feels weird all of a sudden to have these other people around."

"You brought us in." He tells her

"Yeah, but you turned in with a shot boy in your arms"

I tilt my head. That's true...

T seems mad. He really wants to let them join us.

I wouldn't mind if they weren't prisoners. And not only that, I mean, Merle was a prisoner too in several occasions and he wasn't a bad guy... At least not with us...

Hell, I don't know, Merle was still Merle with people that had nothing to do with us...

"They can't even kill walkers." Glenn says

"They're convicts, bottom line" Rick says

"Those two might actually have less blood on their hands than we do." T-Dog insists. Theres a pause. No one says anything for a bit, then I look at my brother.

Rick looks at me and my brother.

"What do you think?" He asks us since we haven't talked

"We get guys like this." I mumble.

Daryl nods. "Hell, We grew up with them."

Rick listens to us thinking on his decision.

"And?"

"We could just be with them as easy as we're out here with you, guys." My brother mumbles

T's eyes get brighter. "So you're saying..."

"Woah! Hold your horses! We never said they could join us!" I tell him

"Hell, no!" Daryl says making Rick raise one of his eyebrows "Let 'em take their chances out on the road, just like we did."

T-Dog rolls his eyes "What I'm saying, Daryl..." He starts but Rick interrupts him "When I was a rookie, I arrested this kid. Wanted for stabbing his kid blubbered like a baby during the interrogation, during the trial suckered the jury.

He was acquitted due to insufficient evidence. 2 weeks later shot another girl." Rick says

T shakes his head pissed

"We've been through too much." Our leader keeps saying

"So, what are we gonna do?" I ask him

"Our deal with them stands."

* * *

"Carl!" I say loudly when I approach the entrance of the cell area. "Come on! I got something for Hershel!"

I see how Carl rushes out of his cell with the keys and runs to open the door for me.

He widens his eyes at the pair of crutches in my hands.

"Where did you get those?" He asks excited.

Lori and Beth hurry out of the old man's cell too.

"T found them somewhere and told me to bring them" I explain and walk inside Hershel's cell. He looks a lot better. Now that I think of his appearance, he reminds me of Santa Clause. I smile to him "Who would've thought that Santa Clause receives presents too?" They all smile while I give the crutches to Lori and Beth. Hershel shakes his head

"Merry Christmas" I tell him

"I'm not that old." He tells me and sits carefully on the bed to stand with Lori's help.

"Of course not" I chuckle.

"Took you long enough" Herschel grunts trying to get his valance on the crutches.

"It was only a day" I tilt my head teasing him.

"It felt like years"

"Just take your time." Lori holds him

"Daddy, don't push yourself" Beth says in a sweet tone.

I try not to think of my old man and how I wish he was as good as Rick or Hershel..

Well, never happened. And now he's dead.

I walk out of the cell to avoid my thoughts and give the four people in there some space.

"I can't stand looking up at the bottom of that bunk any longer" I hear Hershel grunt.

"You know," he looks at me "think I'm pretty steady. Thank you"

I smile. "It's nothing."

Hershel moves and makes sure he can move by himself before telling Carl, Lori and Beth that he wants to go on his own.

"That's a good start" Lori says and smiles at both Hershel and me.

"You cleared all those bodies out?" Herschel asks when we're out of the cell block.

* * *

I let go of the door once they're down the stairs leading and start follow them again.

I feel happy. Hershel's moving.

"It's starting to look like a place we could really live in" he notices

The guys have finished moving the vehicles. They're by the whole in the fence getting wood inside to set up fires inside when the night comes.

I like the idea.

"Hey, watch your step. Last thing we need is you falling" I hear Lori say and turn my attention back to them.

"You're doing great, Daddy" Beth smiles and Herschel smiles back at her.

"Hey Carl" I tease "I bet Hershel can move faster than you"

Carl smiles "oh yeah? Ready to race, Herschel?" he asks and the old man turns his head to look at us.

"Give me another day. I'll take you on."

We laugh.

"You'll bite the dust" I tell Carl.

I look up again.

The three guys in the catwalk look at us. I wonder if Daryl is still a bit mad at me.

He's been rude to me all morning.

Rick nods to me.

I interpret it as a 'good job' sign.

I smirk.

I see how their faces change.

I frown in confusion. Whats wrong?

"Walkers!" Carl yells. I turn around hoping its a lie but widen my eyes when I see more than a dozen of walkers coming to us.

Its feels like they're coming in slow motion to make it clear that we're screwed.

"No!" I hear Rick shout. I see how Carl and Lori lift their guns and shoot the walkers.

"Mac, Get out of there!" I hear Daryl's raspy voice.

Oh, now he worries?!

I reach for my Beretta.

I put my hand where my holster is supposed to be.

I look up to the walkers with wide eyes.

I left my guns in the tower. How could I be so stupid?!

I bend as fast as I can and get my knife out of my boot. Lucky for me I even sleep with it.

I lift it and run to Lori to try to protect her and the baby.

I don't care how bitchy she was before and how much I can get to hate her. She's part of the group and got Rick's innocent kid inside her.

"Lori!" I hear him scream

Hershel comes to my mind. I turn my head to look at him and Beth.

Looks like they acted fast. They're safe.

Hershel used one of his crutches to lock himself and his daughter in one of the cage entrances of our cell block.

I turn my attention back to the walkers.

"That gate is open!" T-Dog shouts pointing at the open gate where the walkers are all coming from. "We gotta close it or else they won't stop coming!"

Maggie shouts for us to move. She's standing by cell block D.

"We'll close the gate" T tells me and moves next to Carol. "Help Maggie" I nod

"Go! We're right behind you!" I tell Lori and yell to Carl to move inside too.

We rush to Maggie. I stab a walker that got too close to us before she closes the gate and run up the stairs to inside.

I look to the yard before following them.

The guys are running as fast as they can. They seem to have trouble with the keys.

Maggie shouts my name.

I run inside with them and close the door behind me.

This cell block is quiet.

We've never been in this place. I am panting.

I grab my knife tightly. We walk to the cells carefully.

Maybe we can lock ourselves in one of them. Be safe in there.

Maggie walks in front, then Carl, Lori and I go last to make sure nothing is behind us. Plus I don't have a proper weapon to take help her there.

"Shit!" Maggie suddenly yells.

A bunch of walkers start following us again.

"Get back! Get back" she says and pushes us back

I run to the dark corridors leading to the lower levels and hold the grille door open for them

"Get in here!" I call.

I pull the door when they're in and watch how the walkers reach for me. Theres no way back now.

I look at one of them in the eye for a moment and run behind my small group again.

* * *

We walk for a moment in the dark corridors.

Loud sirens startle us and the emergency lights start blinking.

"What the fuck is that?!" I ask loud enough for them to hear me. We look around trying to find the source.

"I thought there was no power!" Maggie asks me

"The generators were dead! We checked them!"

"Then who turned them back on?" Lori asks.

"I don't know!"

"You think there are more prisoners around?" Carl asks worried

"Could be" I say

"Keep your eyes open" Maggie commands and we keep walking.

A couple of minutes later I just want to kill something.

Those alarms are driving me crazy! I'm starting to get mad because of all this

We walk in a line like before until I see Lori groan in pain. She leans on the wall pressing her forehead against it.

"Maggie wait!" I call.

She turns around

"What's wrong with her?" Carl asks with wide eyes.

"Something's not right." She gasps and squeezes her eyes together in pain. She takes a moment to talk again "I think the baby's coming"

"What?!" I widen my eyes too in horror.

"Mom?!" Carl calls

Maggie helps her stand properly and feels her belly while I try not to panic

"Can't you keep it in? I don't know, hold it or something?!"

"No time for jokes" Maggie growls to me angrily

"I'm not joking! I know it's impossible but now its not a good time!"

"We need to find a place where she can give birth."

I widen my eyes even more."You have to be kidding me!"

We look behind me. We can hear loud groans and clumsy steps.

"Does it look like I'm kidding?!" Lori asks me even angrier.

The damn alarms are not helping!

"We gotta move now!" Carl points his gun to the corridor

"I'm on it!" I mumble and run in front of them.

Now Maggie and Lori are behind me and Carl runs on the back with his gun.

I am absolutely terrified.

How are we gonna help Lori through all this?! What am I supposed to do if Maggie tells me to help her? I mean, Carl is a boy. She cant ask him to...

Fuck!

I try to focus on getting them out of here. Or find a safe place for Lori to give birth right fucking now.

I stop. I see shadows in front of me.

More walkers are coming. We're surrounded.

I look around in panic and see a door in one of the walls "In here!" I command and rush to open the door.

I feel relieved when no walkers come out to attack me.

I hold the door open until Maggie helps Lori in and Carl walks behind them.

I follow them.

The groans become more and more loud each second so I close the door and hold the handle to avoid them opening it... If they know how to...

* * *

I hear them all outside.

I think they don't know we're in here. They're not banging on the door. Thats a good sign.

"Come here, let's get your pants off." I hear Maggie say and walk slowly to where they are.

I'm shaking so badly... I'm in shock.

The day I said I wanted to see the baby I didn't mean I wanted to see it coming out!

I try not to look at her or make her uncomfortable since she's naked from the waist down.

Lori grunts "ok"

"You're gonna need to help deliver your brother or sister." Maggie tells Carl. I look at him and his terrified face.

I cant believe it.

"You up for it?"

Carl just blinks scared.

I guess thats a no.

"Do you even know how?" I ask her

"Dad taught me," she assures "but trust me, it's my first time."

I scoff and walk in circles to try to calm myself a little bit.

Lori grunts once more while Maggie checks her... Things...

Maggie sighs frustrated "I can't tell."

"I gotta push." Lori says determined and panting. "I gotta push"

I stop walking and look at them again.

Why is she standing up? She moves to a wall and grabs a chain hanging from the ceiling.

Carl and I watch frozen in our places.

Maggie kneels behind her and she pushes.

Lori grunts, huffs and screams. I look back to make sure the walkers didn't hear her.

Lori pushes one more time and cries "Somebody!" I don't know if I should be next to her helping her... What do I do?!

"I'm okay," she says when she stops pushing and Maggie offers her hand "I'm okay. I'm okay."

Maggie looks at us and then back to Lori. "You're doing great, Lori." She cheers "Just keep doing it. Your body knows what to do. Let it do all the work."

Lori pushes one more time.

"You're doing great." Maggie tells her

Suddenly Lori yelps.

Maggie stops her "Lori, don't push!" Carl and I look at each other "stop. Something's wrong."

Maggie's hand is bloody.

Lori lets go of the chains and Maggie looks at me. "Help me lay her on the floor" I walk forward and help Maggie.

"Mom?" Carl rushes to her "Mom, look at me, look at me." He pleads when we set Lori down ."Keep your eyes open."

"We have to get you back to Dad." Maggie looks around looking for something.

"I'm not gonna make it." Lori whispers.

"What if Hershel comes here?" I suggest "I can run out there and bring him"

"No." Lori shakes her head. "Its too dangerous. For both of you."

"Lori, with all this blood, I don't even think you're fully dilated yet." Maggie tells her looking at the blood in her hands. "No amount of pushing is gonna help."

Carl takes Lori's hand

"What do we do?" I ask her "there must be something we can..."

"I know what it means," Lori interrupts me. "and I'm not losing my baby. You've gotta cut me open."

I look at Maggie with wide eyes. My hands are shaking.

We're just losing time talking.

"No." Maggie says "I can't."

"You don't have a choice." She raises her eyebrows and shakes her head. "You girls have to save my baby"

"But, Carol is the one that..." I tell her.

"Dad only taught me the steps, Lori. If I..."

"Please." Lori interrupts Maggie

Maggie shakes her head.

"I have no anesthetic, no equipment..."

Lori looks at me. "Mac has a knife."

I look at my knife and then at Lori.

My knife has walker blood on it. Even if we clean it, it's infected.

If my knife touches any human being... If it touches Lori...

"Its infected" I say

"I know"

"Its gonna kill you. It'll only make you turn into one of them."

"My baby has to survive. Please." I shake my head. As much as I hate her I dont want to be the one to kill her, and now she's nothing but one of the group members. I think I gotta help her. She keeps talking "My baby. for all of us. Please, Mac! Maggie! Please, I need you both to do this." She says. She lifts her shirt "You see my old C-section scar?"

I'm still debating myself.

We all want the baby to survive, and the only way to do it is opening Lori completely with my infected knife.

Plus Carl is here! This is my Friend's mom.

And what about Rick?

This'll break Rick. If Rick breaks the whole group will fall apart.

I can't cut Lori open.

I wont have her blood on my hands.

I stand and grab the knife tighter shaking my head again. "I can't." I say walking back

"You can." She tells me. "You have to give Maggie the knife and help her save my baby" she then calls Carl and starts crying. "Carl? Baby, I don't want you to be scared, okay? This is what I want. This is right."

Maggie gets closer to me. I back up knowing what she's trying to do.

I really don't want to kill Lori...

"you take care of your daddy for me, all right?" I hear her telling her son. "And your little brother or sister."

"You don't have to do this." Carl sobs

Maggie insists on taking my knife. I back up a little more.

"You're gonna be fine. You are gonna beat this world. I know you will. You are smart, and you are strong, and you are so brave, and I love you."

"I love you too." Carl replies to his mother.

"You gotta do what's right, baby. You promise me, you'll always do what's right. It's so easy to do the wrong thing in this world. so if it feels wrong, don't do it, all right If it feels easy don't do it. Don't let the world spoil you."

Why is this so hard? She's not even my mom!

She never cared for me. When I needed their support she made the group left us.

I just don't want to do this because I see how Carl is suffering right now and I don't know how our leader will react.

They do not deserve that.

But the baby deserves a chance...

Maggie puts her hands on mine. The one holding the weapon.

Rick is gonna hate me for this...

I let go of it hesitantly and look at Maggie.

I nod.

"You're so good." Lori hugs Carl. "You're my sweet boy. The best thing I ever did.

I love you, my sweet boy"

Maggie and I walk back to where she is. Maggie nods asking if shes ready.

Lori nods "Maggie, when this is over, you're gonna have to.."

"Dont say that"

"You have to do it. It can't be Rick."

I reply "I'll do it"

No one, not even Lori as bitchy as she is, deserves coming back as a walker.

I wont let her turn.

"You" she says to me "I've seen how he talks to you. You're like a daughter to him. Dont let him turn into something he's not."

I try to console her "I won't... "

"Promise it."

We kneel besides her.

"I promise" i say. Lets do this.

"all right."

"I'm sorry." Maggie says and cuts Lori's skin.

She screams in pain until she passes out.

Maggie cuts and works on bringing the baby while I hold the skin and muscles open.

I see how she bleeds to death slowly.

Carl cries during the entire process.

It feels like an eternity to me until Maggie pulls the baby out. Its a baby girl.

I am worried. Aren't babies supposed to cry?

Its not crying.

Maggie rubs her small chest. Nothing.

She rolls her and taps her back until she cries

I sigh and sniff.

Shit this is not easy..

I feel happy for the baby, but I don't know how to feel about Lori.

I just can't cry. Even if I feel like it. Something is stopping me.

I take the baby while Maggie puts Lori's guts back inside her.

I wonder why. She's already dead.

I give back the baby when She's done.

"We have to go." Maggie tells with the baby on her arms.

I stare at the bloody knife on the ground.

"We can't just leave her here." Carl says when Maggie starts walking out. She stops and turns back to us.

"Thats right" I mumble still watching the knife "shes gonna turn"

I walk to the body that used to be Lori. I'm going to stab the back of her head but carl stops me.

"No. I'll do it."

"Carl. You don't have to" Maggie tells him

"She's my mom."

"I'm sorry" I nod "You can do this."

I walk to the door.

Maggie walks behind me. I open the door a bit and check for walkers.

The corridor is empty.

I look at her and look when a gun shot rings through the air.

Carl did it.

He walks past us opening the door and walking out.

I look at Maggie in shock. She follows Carl quietly.

Stay quiet for a moment. I try to get my shit together and then walk out for them.

* * *

I open the gate looking at everyone outside. My eyes meet Rick's and then my brother's.

Daryl seems to be about to run to me but stops himself when he looks down to my knife with a confused look. Then the baby starts crying.

I look down.

I'm sorry, Rick.

Maggie and Carl walk past me. Maggie is still crying.

"Where...where is she?" Rick asks

No one replies.

Rick stares at my bloody hands and my knife. He looks at me with betrayed eyes. "Where is she?!"

He walks to the entrance of the cell block. Right where I am.

"No Rick, no!" Maggie shouts. Daryl steps forward but stops when Rick stops too.

"What did you...?"

I look down. "I'm sorry..."

I would love to say I didn't do it, but I did... At least part of it...

It is my knife that killed his wife, it is her blood on my hands and clothes.

He cries and cries and cries.

He collapses on the floor crying.

"I'm sorry." I mumble again.

"No!" Rick yells and sobs "No!"


	24. Asskicker

**Hello, lovely readers.**

 **I'm sorry to start this with an author note, but I got 2 good news and one bad. The good news is that I was watching a movie feeling miserable and bored on netflix cause my brain had just given up and BOOM! A bomb on inspiration came to me and made me pause my film to start writing a new chapter right then! The bad news is that that specific chapter is the end of all this. Buut! Heres where the second part of the good news comes! I still got a lot to write so you'll be reading a lot more chapters (seasons) to get there! I think I can make this last up to season 5 or 6.. I dont know. I'll see. Maybe I'll do less.**

 **Now, I dont know what season 6 finale has been keeping from us, but I can only tell you...**

 **If Daryl (or Carol) dies, I riot with the other fans who would do the same. Definitely not stop watching, but why not a riot? Rigt after I throw my TV out of the window and cry like I do every time someone kills Norman on screen...**

 **Anyway, I love reading y'all's reviews! Sometimes I even read them two or three times for some reason!**

 **Thank you for reading and following my story! Heres the new chapter for you!**

* * *

 **Three months after the farm...**

Today we came across a High School. This one in particular is special.

Jesse and I we're never able to get inside. We actually made fun of each other for not being good enough to steal chemicals from here.

Not like he needed the money, bastard was rich, but he liked helping us cook the blue.

Merle used to make me go with him in my summer vacations sometimes.

Sometimes My brothers and I... and dad, went hunting together. Uncle Jess would go with us too.

This school is far from our hometown.

Jesse brought me here like four times, traveled for hours to get here and not once we were able to get in.

With all the security they had here it made me wonder if this was a high school or a prison?

It brings me a lot of memories.

I can now run short distances and jump a few times, but I get tired easily.

We've been moving a few times being careful to not hurt me again.

The group left us alone a long time ago. I'm not sure how long's it been.

We walk through the empty hallways wondering how is it that there are no walkers around, not even outside.

Daryl got scared because a cat jumped on him in the biology room. He's been grumpy since.

I tried to made him relax by playing with the plastic skeleton lying on the ground, but hey! This guy here is Daryl Dixon!

After finding some food and water around, we go inside the clinic to search for bandages but instead, we find blood and guts everywhere.

"Woah.. Creepy shit right here." I tell Daryl backing up because I can't stand the smell.

"This explains why there's no walkers." Daryl says and looks around.

He comes back out after a few minutes shaking his head.

This place has been raided.

"You think it was them?" I ask curious

"Could've been anyone"

I turn my head down the hallway, curiosity eating me from the inside.

Looks like we're heading to the gym. We keep walking quietly.

We stop near the door. We still haven't seen any walker, which is really weird.

My brother takes a deep breath after looking at each other, wishing us luck, and kicks the door open.

Every single walker in the goddamn place has been locked in here and is now looking at us.

"Shit!" Daryl says.

We run not bothering to look back.

"Oh shit!" I run.

At least a hundred walkers coming for us.

Daryl pushes me to another corridor. "Upstairs" he says.

We gain some time by running up the stairs. Walkers are slow and trip with them.

"Daryl.." I mumble

My body just can't keep going. I can't breathe.

Walkers may be slow but they don't have to get their breaths back.

Stairs are still a bad idea for me.

"Come on!" My brother roars grabbing my arm and pushing me inside the first classroom he sees. He locks the door.

This is the chemistry room! Great!

I couldn't get in and now I cant get out!

"The window!" Daryl says pushing a bookshelf to the door.

"We're on a damn second floor!" I gasp

I lean on the wall next to the window and try to catch my breath.

"Use the damn tree! Don't be a pussy!" Daryl yells

He knows that calling me pussy will make me do whatever he wants.

Asshole...

We hear the window on the door breaking and the walkers growling harder. The shelf starts shaking.

I roll my eyes. I look at the tree carefully and then jump out.

I hang for a second holding a branch and then let myself fall trying to land as best as I can. I breathe heavily.

I look up and see Daryl doing the same. I move to avoid him from falling on me.

We now run to the motorcycle and get out of there.

* * *

 **Now...**

I can't stop looking at Rick. I've never seen him so broken and crying like that.

He's a complete mess.

I feel super bad for him.

Daryl is kneeling in front of him. He stopped crying but is now just sitting there staring at nothing.

"Rick?" Daryl calls his name a few times but he doesn't reply. "Rick, are you with me?"

Daryl waves his hand slowly in front of our leader's face but once again, nothing happens.

"Its not gonna work" I mumble and tell him to leave him alone while Hershel demands to see the crying thing that is now on Carl's arms.

Daryl stands up.

"You ok?" He asks me

I nod absently

We walk to where the group is around Hershel and the baby.

"Those are hunger cries" Daryl comments. Everyone looks at him like he said something out of this world.

"How do you know that?" Glenn asks. Daryl rolls his eyes.

"We're gonna have to feed it. We got anything a baby can eat?"

Hershel looks back at the still crying baby for a second and then looks up to my brother. He says "The good news is she looks healthy. But she needs formula. And soon, or she won't survive."

Daryl shakes his head with a frown and picks his crossbow up from the floor throwing it on his shoulder "No. No way. Not her. We ain't losing nobody else. I'm going on a run. Beth." He calls. Looks like he's gonna be the leader until Rick comes back.

Well, that's new. Makes sense, but its just weird seeing him as the leader..

Beth walks closer to him while he bends a little to be as tall as she is. He whispers something to her.

Beth nods and looks back at Carl "I'll look out for him." She says seeming happy to help.

My brother now looks at the remaining prisoners. they're part of the group now? Ok.

Welcome to the madness.

"You two get the fence. Too many pile up, we got ourselves a problem." Daryl commands.

I look at how they nod and run to do what he says. Then I look back to Rick. He's still just there without moving.

I wonder whats in his mind right now. What should I do?

"Mac" I turn my head to look at Daryl "You done? Vamonos!"

Daryl speaks Spanish? Ha.

When I was little I used to think that our little knowledge of Spanish sounds like an Irish cow trying to speak Mexican.

Anyway, I nod. Vamonos is Vamonos and when he says it he means it.

I start walking to where he is but hear a metallic sound behind me. Like.. Rick lifting his axe from the floor?!

I turn to where Rick was.

He rushes to the entrance of the cell block with the axe he dropped moments ago on his hands.

I shout his name and try to go get him. Daryl grabs my wrist.

Ugh! He always does that!

I look at my brother with an angry expression "Let go of me."

The group's eyes look from the door Rick disappeared in to us.

I try to pull away from my brother

I don't think leaving Rick alone now is a good idea.

"I need to go with him."

"No you don't" he tells me. He looks straight to me "you'll just be waisting your time and right now we need to focus on getting the formula to save that baby."

I think as fast as I can to consider both options and then decide whats best.

I nod "alright. "

Daryl lets go of me and turns around to face the group again.

My brother calls Maggie and Glenn "any ideas on where to find formula and diapers?" He asks while we walk to where the vehicles are.

"There is a Piggly Wiggly in the 85th." Glenn suggests.

"No, the babies section was emptied. Lori told me to keep an eye out." Maggie mumbles

"Is there a place that has not been completely looted?" I ask

"We saw signs of a mall north of here." Maggie says while we stop walking next to the cars.

"Yes, but there are too many road debris." Glen scratches his head. "The car'll never go that far."

Daryl chuckles "That's why we have a bike"

He looks down to me and tells me to get on it. I do as he says while Glenn and Maggie tell him where to find the mall.

After that he gets on the bike with me.

"Get the gate!" Daryl demands and the engine roars.

* * *

"Which way?" I ask my brother before we enter the broken abandoned mall.

We can see a lot of walkers inside

"Follow me" he mumbles looking around. "Stay close"

We run through the small herd being as careful as possible. Its the only way of finding the place.

The walkers growl and run to get us.

We enter the place and close the door as fast as we can. The glass wont keep them out for long, but it'll keep them busy enough for us to find a way out.

I look around surprised.

"Baby paradise right here. I thought everything would be raided." Mt brother chuckles at my comment "Well, who has a baby in the apocalypse?"

"Lori Grimes" he mumbles.

Right. Lori...

I take a look at all the things while searching the place.

Its kinda cute. This whole situation.

We're risking ourselves to save a new born.

I take a look at the clothes and show them to Daryl "Yo! Look at this!"

He walks to where I am. He nods and says it'll work. He tells me to take it.

He walks looking for more clothes and diapers.

I look at the size of the object in my hand. These are super tiny clothes. "Was I ever this small?"I ask curious

"Nope" He shakes his head and smirks to me. "you were way smaller than Rick's kid."

I try to imagine baby me since there were no pictures, no drawings, no Nothing. No evidence of me being a baby.

I put the clothes in my backpack and look for more things.

Everything is SUPER adorable in here.

Dirty, but still adorable.

We walk to the back of the store after getting some clothes for Lori's baby.

There's a wooden door with a small window on the right. On top of it it reads a barely visible "daycare" in pink with a teddy bear hugging a heart next to the letters.

We look at each other.

Daryl breaks the window with his crossbow. I check if there's any walkers inside and get my arm in to unlock it.

Once open we go in and keep looking.

Why isn't there any of them around here?

We walk to a big room with cradles. We start searching once more for the formula.

There's blood on one cradle. Flies are all over it and the smell is just unbelievable.

I know whats in there. I can hear soft groans.

I'm not looking.

I kneel to open one of the drawers near the bloody place. Daryl takes care of the innocent walker inside the cradle.

I take three baby bottles.

Daryl walks to another room while I search for clean diapers and comes back with the formula Hershel said.

His bag is bigger so we move the baby's stuff from mine to his.

We head out.

We walk past a small room and hear noises inside a closet.

Daryl walks to it, puts his light in his mouth and puts his hand on the handle to open the door. I take my beretta and wait for him to open.

Daryl opens the closet.

Its just a possum...

It is growling and hissing at us.

Daryl shoots an arrow killing it instantly. "Hello dinner!" He says taking his light out again.

He chuckles and walks out of the room. I look at the animal, then at the now empty corridor

"I will not put it in my backpack"

"Yes you will!" I hear his voice "you better hurry cause I'm leaving!"

I roll my eyes and kneel to get the arrow out of the animal's head and pick it up.

I guess he found our way out.

* * *

We enter the cell block. I can hear the baby crying somewhere.

Too noisy for me.

Are all babies this noisy?

We go down the stairs to where everyone is.

I watch how my brother gives his bag to Maggie and takes the baby from Beth carefully.

I don't know her name, so I guess I'll just call her baby for now.

Baby stops crying as soon as she notices Daryl is holding her. I remember Merle told me I did the same the first time I saw him.

He's got something that babies like.

I look around and ask Hershel if Rick is still down there. He nods.

He says they haven't seen or heard of him since last time we all saw him.

I'm worried about him... They shouldn't have left him alone...

I lean on one of the walls and look at the scene going on around me.

Maggie is still shaking the now prepared formula slightly and approaches Daryl to feed the baby.

Daryl shakes his head. He takes the formula from her.

He tries to make baby eat and smiles when she starts sucking on the bottle.

I think thats the cutest thing I've ever seen him doing.

We all watch how he holds her. How he rocks her and looks at her.

I feel bad for Lori... And I'm worried about Rick..

I bet he hates me for killing Lori... But it had to be done, right?

Once the anger fades he'll understand, right?

Some of us cant help but smile. This has to be a good thing for all of us, isn't it?

It makes me happy but at the same time I feel sad about it.

Her parents are missing this... The only one who will remember this moment is Carl...

It makes want to remember when I was a baby. When I grew up.

Obviously I can't, but I remember when I was little and Daryl and Merle played with me. Merle more than Daryl.

He even played hide and seek and tag and... Beer pong... With lemonade instead of beer... I was 4...

The first time we actually played with beer was my 9th birthday. Then we changed it to moonshine and then to many other things but thats a whole other story.

I miss Merle so much.

I would give anything to be at least one hour with him.

I look back up to Daryl and the baby and remember the fight we got yesterday.

Alright, maybe not anything. I wouldn't give Daryl away, not even for Merle.

"She got a name yet?" He asks looking at Carl

The kid shakes his head. "Not yet." He mumbles with a sad tone in his voice "But I was thinking...maybe Sophia?" The whole group looks at him now.

We remember the little girl we lost a year ago.

Sophia.

I can see the change in my brother's face.

"Then there's Carol, too.." He keeps going. All of us look at him confused. Daryl frowns. "And... Andrea...Amy...Jacqui...Patricia...or...Lori.." Carl takes a deep breath and looks down. "I don't know.."

I think she need a name that brings us good memories. Not death

I wonder what my mom's name was.

How did she call me before she gave me away? What was my name the first 2 months of my life?

I think I shouldn't worry about it. I am who I am now and nothing will ever change that.

My brother takes a deep breath. He looks down at the baby. She is still eating and looking at him with her big blue eyes.

"You like that?" He asks her "little ass-kicker?"

He looks back up and around to the rest of the group.

He grins "That's a good name, right? Little ass-kicker" he repeats to her.

We laugh.

Daryl rocks the baby again and speaks softly to her. "You like that, hun? You like that, sweetheart?"

* * *

It is really dark now. We use flashlights to make our ways through the cell block.

I walk upstairs when I notice Daryl has moved into a cell. That is another good sign. It means we're staying here for a longer time than I expected.

As soon as he notices me walking to my cell he calls me. I approach him and ask whats wrong.

"Rick hasn't come back yet. I'm gonna go look for him early in the morning." He says "you think you can rest enough for coming?"

"Sure. Don't worry about it" He nods. I turn to leave to my own cell but stop at the entrance. "By the way, you feeding that baby was the cutest thing I've ever seen in my entire life"

Daryl looks away. "Just leave me alone now. Go get some fucking sleep."

Ha. He's embarrassed.

I chuckle "you're a good leader."

"You know I am no leader"

"Well whatever you did today. It was good. Thanks."

He hums as a response. "Goodnight"

I walk out to my cell.

Ass-Kicker cries in the middle of the night...


	25. Little kids

**Four months and a half after the farm...**

"Holy mother of..." I whisper "...no fucking way!" I say amused and call my brother so he can see my discovery. I yell his name.

Now that I'm ok we've been surviving around Senoia and nearby places

The weather has become better so its easier to move around and hunt without having to sleep with our legs tangled to prevent us from freezing... that was awkward.

This time, were staying at a toy store.

Who would look in here, right?

My brother appears on the door ready to kill anything that made me shout.

He rolls his eyes and leans on the door when he sees there's no threat at all.

"Don't be so fucking loud. Walkers can still hear us."

"We're on a well secured second floor. We had to climb up here and last time I checked Walkers couldn't climb. Don't be an asshole, it's worth it!"

"Alright. what is it?" He asks annoyed

"Look at this!" I say showing him my new water gun "I swear this thing still fucking works!"

"Sure." He says and turns to leave.

"No no! Don't go!"

"Why not?"

"When was the last time Merle, you and I played like stupid little kids?"

"When you were like 5. we don't have time to..." Daryl gets interrupted when I pull the plastic trigger shooting cold water to his back. He freezes in his place and gasps.

"Too bad you don't have your vest on" I tease when he turns.

He's about to yell at me but I shoot him in the face and laugh.

His face of annoyance is priceless! He growls staring at me.

"You need a haircut" I tell him when I notice the water traveling down the tips of his hair.

"Oh yeah?" He asks dryly.

"Yup"

"Give me that shit!" Daryl jumps on me pulling the toy "you want me to be a kid? Heres your stupid fucking kid, you piece of shit" he says

He pulls the toy until I let it go. I look at him surprised.

"Don't you dare!" I tell him giggling and back up

He looks at me with an evil smirk

Well, I'm screwed.

He shoots a little bit of water.

I gasp and look at him with wide eyes. "Its cold!"

"It is!" He says making fun of me

He shoots again but this time he shoots like I did to him. I laugh and run away from him.

I throw him random toys I find in my way with him behind me shooting water to my back.

It feels super cold.

I stop to look for another water gun but he tackles me. He grabs me and holds me on the floor.

"No" I yell and laugh.

He sits on my stomach and holds my hands together.

"No?" He asks "you wanted to play!"

He shoots more water to my face and laughs

"Daryl, no!" I say setting my hands free. I covering myself with them and trying to fight him.

We play like that until Daryl runs out of water.

It was fun. We're both all wet and tired.

I feel like a five year old.

Daryl stands up leaving the gun on the floor while I complain about how heavy he is.

He shuts me up with a smirk and makes sure we didn't draw too much attention.

He helps me up and we check on the windows. The walkers are staggering like always except for one or two that heard all our yelling.

I search my backpack to get more water but this time I don't waste it.

I drink a bit.

I call my brother's name while putting the cap on the plastic bottle to then throw it in his direction.

He catches. He drinks and throws it back.

We hear a gunshot that startles both of us. Yeah... Not only walkers can hear us.

I put the water back inside my backpack while Daryl kills the two walkers trying to climb up to where we are.

We climb back down and sneak out of the place as fast as we can.

No more games.

* * *

 **Now...**

Lori's screaming is still in my mind. I wake up startled by it.

I relax a little when I realise I was dreaming and notice a little bit of light coming from outside.

Huh... The sun is coming up. Wasn't my brother going to wake me up?

I put my boots on and walk out of my cell making sure I have all my weapons near me this time.

I look inside my brother's cell and frown. It's empty.

I walk down the stairs looking for him and try to not wake anyone up just yet. Last night we all had a hard time with the lil' ass-kicker, specially the Greene family.

Daryl's crossbow is on one of the tables with some bolts around it.

Where is he?

I look the the door leading to the lower levels. I think he wouldn't go down there without his bow.

I walk up the small stairs leading outside. I walk out.

I look around and start walking through the yard. It is so quiet that I can hear the walkers all the way down and outside growling softly.

I look up. The sun is just raising and the weather is a little cold.

It is the perfect morning. The sky looks beautiful in those tones of red and yellow.

But then I look back down. All the corpses on the floor.

The blood from yesterday is still there.

I sigh and keep looking for my brother.

I open another gate and keep walking. The walkers chew on the wire outside of the catwalk.

I see Daryl down there. The graves.

Glenn picked a nice place for them. It makes me feel nostalgic.

I stop walking in front of Lori's and Carol's. Right behind Daryl.

I look at their graves feeling completely awful. I sigh.

I look at Daryl. I wonder why is he here.

He's kneeling on Carol's grave. I see how he carefully puts his hand on the cross and rubs his thumb on it slowly.

He just makes me feel depressed.

There's a cherokee rose on her grave.

"We're gonna find her" he tells me and stands up.

I nod and walk to his side. "We will"

We stay there for a few seconds. Just staring at the graves of what once were our friends.

I remember all that's happened since we joined them.

I remember... Atlanta... The first time they attacked us in camp... Amy... Merle...

I look down to hold a tear from coming out of my eye.

Daryl looks down to me. "You ok?" He asks.

I nod once more. "Do you think we should dig another one?"

"Mac..."

He rolls his eyes. He knows what I'm thinking about.

I shrug "Carol is not here either. Do you think we should like... Bury something that was his?"

"What do you think?" He mumbles.

"I don't know..." I sniff. "I just want to have something to remember him like Carol and T-Dog..."

Daryl sighs "I don't think is a good idea"

I dont cry managing to control myself. I nod "I miss him..."

"I know. I do too..."

"I'm sorry." I say wiping my face awkwardly with my hands and keep looking at the graves.

Daryl clears his throat "Lets go" he says. "We got stuff to do"

We walk back to the prison quietly. We gotta look for Rick.

* * *

I am super tired today. Last night Ass-Kicker wouldn't stop crying for hours straight.

Daryl looks as tired as me but he's not the kind of person who would take a nap ever.

Carl is up too. He seems absent.

Its his turn to feed the baby after last night's nightmare for the Greene family...

No one is awake but the four of us.

Daryl and I are eating something as quiet as we can to go look for Rick.

I am worried. I hope he's ok.

Daryl finishes eating and after showing Carl the proper ŵay of feeding her, takes the baby for a bit before going. Just to wait for me to finish eating.

He seems to be trying to cheer Carl up by playing with the baby. Carl smiles a bit.

I smirk.

He really is good with that baby.

When I'm done I stand up and let them know. Daryl gives the baby back to Carl and we hear the gate behind us open.

We turn in surprise.

"Hey..."

It is Rick. I feel too ashamed and embarrassed to look at him in the eyes.

He looks at us with tired eyes.

He looks different... Cleaner... And he is wearing different clothes.

"All good?" Daryl asks him

"All good." He mumbles "everyone alright?"

My brother nods but stays quiet.

"Ok" Rick nods too. he walks closer to us. I back up a little when he does and says "I cleared out the boiler block"

Daryl frowns "By yourself? How many were there?"

"I don't know. A dozen, maybe two. I'll wait for the others to wake up, then I have to get back. Just wanted to check on Carl"

Carl stays quiet and just looks down to the baby in his arms.

"You okay?" Rick asks him. He nods.

He has to go back? Why?

* * *

"We can handle taking out the bodies. You don't have to" Glenn tells him but Rick shakes his head.

"I'll help you" he replies and looks at my brother. He asks is we all have guns and knives.

Daryl nods. "We're running low on ammo, though."

"Maggie and me were planning on making a run this afternoon" Glenn says.

"Me and Mac are gonna look for Carol. We're gonna sweep the lower levels next. Axel's there trying to fix the generators."

"Daddy and I found a phone book with some places you can hit, look for bullets and formula" Beth says looking at Glenn

Rick nods absently and heads for the exit again.

"Rick!" Herschel calls him but he ignores the old man.

* * *

We walk the lower levels of the cell block in which the guys found T's body and Carol went missing.

Daryl said we're gonna find her and seems determined to do it.

He suggested to bring Carl to keep him distracted and active. To get him away from his problems for only a few hours if possible.

There are almost no walkers left so its easy to spot them and kill them.

Daryl walks up front with Carl and I following him.

We brought Oscar too. He seems like a good guy.

He points at a door moving slightly and says ".Check it out, man"

Daryl tells us to stop by just looking at us and walks back to Oscar.

Carl and I look at them.

The prisoner keeps going "Must have missed them last night"

"It's probably just one or two of 'em. Don't look they got much fight" Daryl says while checking the door "They ain't going nowhere. We'll take care of it on the way back"

Daryl whistles walking back to where we are and positions himself next to Carl with a soft 'Lets keep moving'.

I move behind them. I know Daryl wants to tell him something.

Carl is still looking down with a blank expression.

I hope Daryl cheers him up. We've been trying all morning, but its understandable.

I walk behind them and just listen to my brother.

"You know, my mom, she liked her wine. She liked to smoke in bed. Virginia Slims." He says checking another cell and then directing his attention back to Carl.

He hates that brand of cigarettes. I found a box once and he just threw it as far as he could after looking at it absently. I'm super interested now.

Merle never told me what happened to their mom. He only said her name was Brooke but never wanted to tell me more about her.

Obviously if Merle never told me I was never gonna be able to get it out of Daryl... But now...

I listen carefully how Daryl says "I was playing out with the kids in the neighborhood. I could do that with Merle gone."

Merle never let Daryl do nothing... He became the cool brother when I got there but thats a whole other story.

I see Carl looking up to him finally. Its good that Daryl caught his attention.

"Anyway," Daryl keeps going "They had bikes, I didn't. We heard sirens gettin louder. They jumped on their bikes, ran after it. You know, hopin t'see something worth seeing.I ran after them, but I couldn't keep up."

I check the cell on my right. Its empty.

I keep following them and listening to the story while imagining a younger version of Daryl in the story.

"I ran around a corner and saw my friends looking at me." He pauses "Hell, I saw everybody looking at me. Fire trucks everywhere. People from the was my house they were there for. That was my mom in bed. Burnt down to nothing. That was the hard part..." He looks down to Carl "You know, she was just gone. Erased. Nothing left of her. People said it was better that way." Daryl sighs "don't know. It didn't even feel real."

I feel sad for him.

I didn't know my mom. I don't even know her name, but him, he knew his mom, he lived with her, she took care of him when he was a kid and one day she's... Suddenly gone...

That's horrible..

"How old were you?" Carl asks feeling sorry and looking a little better. I guess he's happy to see that someone understands what he's feeling.

I cant even imagine how Daryl felt.

"About 8. Maybe 9" Daryl says

"I shot my mom." Carl speaks suddenly "She was out. Hadn't turned yet. I ended it. It was real" Daryl decides to stay quiet until Carl says something else. "Sorry about your mom"

"I'm sorry about yours" Daryl replies putting a hand on the kid's shoulder.

We keep walking in silence until we hear a voice behind us.

"Oh! That's what I'm talking about!" Oscar cheers and we turn around to see what's going on.

I forgot he was here.

He walks inside a cell.

Me and my brother frown. We look at each other and tell Carl to stay close.

"I'll go check it out" I say and walk forward. "What is it?" I ask the prisoner when I get to where he is.

He stands up properly and cheers again "yeah, baby! Just look at this!"

I look down and start laughing at him

"All this drama for a pair of slippers? Come on" I say and move so he can walk out.

Daryl and Carl are coming closer. Daryl frowns when he sees his feet.

"What the hell you need slippers for?"

Oscar smiles."You know. End of the day? Relaxing."

Daryl frowns even more making the prisoner chuckle.

"Y'all gonna be lining up for these things by the end of the day."

"I'll be the first in line" Carl jokes for the first time.

I smile "yeah, you wish"

We stop walking and look around us when we hear something growl behind us.

All of us take our weapons and turn to shoot at whatever is threatening us.

When the walker falls on the floor dead With an arrow on its head I walk closer to inspect it.

"Is it dead?" Oscar asks.

"That's Carol's knife" I mumble taking the weapon out of the undead's arm.

Daryl frowns and rushes to where I am. I hand him the knife.

I bite my lip.

Daryl shakes his head.

"maybe..."

"She's dead." Daryl whispers angrily.

"Daryl.." I don't even know what to say. I just don't want to see him like that...

"Get the fuck out of here" he growls softly turning his head to look at us.


	26. Bitten

**Five months and two weeks after the farm**

We found an abandoned neighborhood that looks like It was once used as a safe zone.

It has two entrances. One in the back and one in the front.

We get in through the one in the back.

There are walkers here and there but it's nothing serious.

We came here looking for ammo since we're both running low. Daryl only has two arrows now, one of them is cracked right the middle and about to break. Using my revolver in an area like this is not at option.

Theres an apartment building in one corner of the safe zone on one side of the back entrance and in front of it theres a small house maybe used as storage.

Daryl tells me to check this area while he checks the front of the abandoned where the houses are.

I nod.

He tells me to check on the apartments when I'm done with the storage and once on top to check around. See if I find something.

"will do." I mumble and walk away from him

* * *

Someone's been sleeping in here. Someone without a group.

I open a closet to my right.

I gasp and jump back when a mummified body falls in my direction.

I kneel to check on it once I make sure it is not a walker.

she has a note on her hand, like a diary page. It is saying how she was locked in here for days with walkers outside the door since the herd attacked them.

She died of dehydration. But the letter mentions another "she" that I dont see in this room, and there are water bottles here. It says: _I dont think anyone else made it. It is just us._

Where is this other lady?

I take the water and head for the building.

It I take a moment to observe how tall it is.

Six floors. Which is five sets of stairs waiting for me.

I sigh and start heading up. I check the doors but most of them are locked and the ones open have nothing in them, or walkers trying to kill me.

I decide to check the top first like Daryl told me and see if we're safe in here.

I head for the next set of stairs and walk all the way up.

I can see Daryl from here. He just stabbed another walker and walked into another house.

I see there's a problem. A herd is walking nearby and these walls were broken down months ago.

the good news is that they're heading somewhere else. I take my walkie and tap the button once just to see if Daryl can reply.

I dont want to talk through the radio and get him killed so I just let him know I see something that may be important

It doesnt take long for him to reply.

I hear a little noise coming from my walkie and then his voice asking "What you got?"

"well, I found a mummy in a closet that was kind enough to give us water but she's not what's worrying me right now."

I see him walking out of the house and looking up locating me easily.

"what do you see?" He looks around to make sure hes not in danger.

"nothing around you..."

"just tell me already"

"Theres a herd nearby." I say "not as big as the one that raided the farm, but enough to tear both of us apart. I'm guessing maybe two or three dozens of them. The walls look like they were burnt to the ground a while ago."

"are they coming this way?" he asks and starts walking again

"no. They're heading somewhere else."

"ok. Check those apartments and come back down when you're done. If you see walkers take em out with your knife, I don't want you shooting and attracting them."

"ok. No problem." I finish the conversation.

I turn around and try the doors again.

* * *

I'm all the way down to the second floor. I found nothing on the other apartments.

If this one is empty or has only walkers in it I'll just go back to Daryl.

The sun is setting and I'm bored.

I open the door slowly and look for anything that may be useful.

I find a music box. I always wanted one of these when I was little.

I wonder what happened to the owner.

I take it and wind it up. I watch it carefully and listen to the soft music coming out of it.

I could be doing this for hours.

For a moment I forget about the walkers and lose myself watching the little doll dancing.

I smile softly. I love it. Its beautiful.

Should I keep it?

I wait for it to finish and put it back on a shelf where I found it.

My smile fades when my brain brings me back to reality.

I should go back to Daryl now.

I'm about to turn to go back to my brother when I hear something familiar and freeze.

A shotgun loading. And a voice saying "Stop right there."

I frown and turn slowly to see who's threatening me.

"I said stop!" a Lady tells me.

Shes got long red hair tied back to a pony tail with some shorter bangs on her face, light green eyes, pale skin and shes holding a shotgun.

"Im gonna shoot you!"

I lift my hands and speak softy "I'm not here to hurt you"

"put the knife on the floor" she commands. I look down to my belt.

I'm not even touching my knife.

I lower my hands and kneel to put it on the floor but she walks closer "slower."

"ok" I say and put the knife down.

before I stand back up she tells me to put my beretta on the floor too.

I pull it out and put it next to my knife slowly.

Fuck.

"Where's your group?"

"Does it look like I have a group?"

"Where's. Your. Group?"

"Dead." I tell her trying to sound convincing "a herd raided our camp two days ago"

"what you got in that backpack?" she nods to me

"Supplies, a blanket, clothes."

She nods.

she tells me to put my bag on the floor and put everything out slowly. She says she'll kill me if I try anything.

I put my backpack on the floor.

I look inside it.

I take my walkie without her noticing and press the button so Daryl knows someone else is here.

She watches how I take my blanket, some clothes, a squirrel and a can of peaches.

"Got ammo?"

"Not for that thing of yours" I mumble nodding towards her shotgun.

"I'll take it, and your gun too"

"Well. Ain't you friendly?" I ask sarcastically

She shoots the ground next to me "wanna try?"

I look at her with a serious expression.

She just fucked up. Walkers are dumb but not deaf.

She just called the herd and my brother may be still down there.

I let go of my walkie and take my revolver slowly.

"give me the ammo"

I try to pull my revolver out and stand up quickly. She notices and kicks me in the face.

I fall backwards letting go of my revolver.

My gun flies and falls somewhere in the room.

She runs to it.

I stand up as fast as I can to go get it first.

I grab her hair and pull her away from my gun when she bends to grab it.

She lets both weapons fall and fights me.

We hit, scratch and fight each other to get the revolver first.

I am winning.

I grab her from behind, putting my right arm around her neck to stop her but I suddenly feel a sharp pain on it.

I scream in pain and let go of her.

I look down to my arm.

There's the clear mark of a bite on it. I can see each and every one of her teeth marked on my skin and a piece of flesh is missing.

Did she just went full walker mode on me?!

"yo, what the fuck?" I yell to her and widden my eyes.

She's pointing my own gun at me.

I grab my arm feeling all the blood thats coming out from it.

I feel drops falling from my fingers to the ground

"you dont want to do that" I mumble.

Daryl peeks his head from the door. I can tell he's not happy with what he's seeing.

He walks in the room with his knife up.

The lady is so concentrated on making my life impossible that she didnt hear him getting closer behind her.

"I really didnt want to kill you" she says "but you gave me no choice..." She's about to pull the trigger when suddenly Daryl grabs her from behind. She widdens his eyes and shoots.

I duck before the bullet hits me.

Daryl looks up to me and with a fast movement of his arm I watch how she falls on the groud letting go of the revolver and grabs her neck in horror.

She looks up to Daryl as blood runs down her body and the most horrible choking sounds come out of her.

I stare at my brother and grab my arm tightly.

When the woman stops moving and struggling. Daryl takes my revolver from the floor and shoots her head twice.

"I thought you said no shooting"

"bitch just called the fucking herd anyway" he growls and walks closer to me.

I try to pull away from him when he takes my arm.

I dont want him to think a walker did it.

He frowns to me. I look at him anxiously.

"what the fuck is that?" he asks letting go of me.

"it was her" I tell him

Daryl walks in circles. He keeps quiet and tightens his jaw.

We are both freaking out. We dont know what this can do to me.

"Its not a walker bite!" I insist trying to calm him, but truth is I'm trying to calm myself

"How do I know its not?" he asks in a bad mood

"you dont believe me?" I ask angrily. I wouldnt be surprised if he doesn't. I dont trust myself on this either.

He stops walking. He looks at my still bleeding arm.

I scoff "Are you fucking serious?!"

He looks at me thinking of something. He decides to trust me.

He takes his bag quickly and searches inside.

He takes a gandage and throws it to me.

"pick up your damn stuff. The herd is coming." he says walking out of the apartment. "and hurry with the bandage. I dont want them following you"

I shake my head angrily and start bandaging my arm.

I look at the dead woman on the floor.

I check if the bandage is secure even though I can see it turning red quickly. I take my stuff and run to my brother.

We ride away from the herd.

* * *

Daryl rides until we run out of fuel. I guess we walk from here.

He says he knows where we are and theres a gas station and some stores nearby. He tells me to stay close since its dark now and we don't even have batteries for our flashlights.

We take our stuff and run in the dark.

We run for a while. Maybe two miles until I see that he really knows where we are.

I see a 7 eleven, a drug store, a book store and a sports store.

He tells me to take what I can from the 7 eleven. He runs for the sports store to look for bolts.

I thought he was gonna get gas...

Using the moonlight I check the pumps before going into the store. They're empty.

I guess he'll take it from cars nearby then.

I walk to the entrance and whistle softly to see if walkers come me but after waiting a moment I walk into the 7 eleven taking all I can since I cant see shit in here... I get a big can of what I think is red bull, and a small can of... I don't know... Sounds like soup when I shake it.. without a label its gonna mystery flavour dinner and peaches I guess.

I hear Daryl whistling. He's calling me.

I walk back to where he is.

He's sucking on a hose leading inside the gas tank of a truck. He stops and spits when the gas fills his mouth.

He's filling two empty gallons with it.

He tells me he found batteries in the drug store and gives me his flashlight. The crossbow has 3 new bolts on it.

He tells me to go into the drug store and heat whatever I found to eat while he brings the bike.

He says we'll sleep in there.

I nod and walk to the back of the store and sit on the floor.

We haven't said a thing about my arm...

I'm scared. What if I turn?

I lay my back on the wall waiting for him.

* * *

I wake up and raise my knife when I feel someone touching me

I stop when I notice its my brother taking off the now soaked in blood bandage from my arm.

Its all red and wet but at least it stopped the bleeding. I'll live.

.. Or at least I hope so...

I put my knife down. While he stares at my injured arm for a few more seconds like he's inspecting it

"What are you doing?" I ask.

He stretches his arm and touches my forehead. "No fever..." He mutters remarking the obvious.

"I told you it's not a walker bite."

To be honest, I am scared of this thing. I dont know if I'll get the fever or what a human bite can cause... I'm playing Russian roulette right now. One simple mistake and I'm dead, maybe taking Daryl with me...

He takes a deep breath, then he looks down to my arm again. "I could swear it is."

"But its not"

I just look at him. I'm confused.

"Hold still" he says putting the flashlight in his mouth and pours a lot of what I think is hydrogen peroxide on the bite.

I groan in pain I trying to pull away involuntarily while foam and bubbles come out of it.

It Fucking burns!

"don't move!" he hisses angrily stretching my arm again and looking down so the flashlight points down too.

He takes now alcohol and pours it on a clean gauze.

As soon as he puts it on I gasp in pain again.

He then works on the bandage making sure it won't fall once he's done. He looks to me and says he don't want to see another bite.

"Don't even think about it." He growls

He gives me the now half empty red bull and tells me it's my turn to keep watch.

Stand up and nod. He deserves to rest.

* * *

It's morning already.

If I was infected, I guess I would've felt something by now.

Human bites are harmless.

I was thinking on leaving Daryl sleep more today but I hear three male voices in the back of the store so I wake my brother up.

We hear them again.

We look at each other knowing what it means.

We take our things as fast and quiet as we can.

Sounds like two men. Maybe three.

Daryl takes his knife hiding it in his hand as he holds the crossbow.

I load my revolver. I know its loud and I only have two bullets left, but we still haven't found any bullets at all...

They're getting closer. I can hear what they say.

Is that Glenn's voice?

Daryl frowns and looks at me.

He looks back up "Rick?"

He looks confused, yet cautious.

There's no answer. The voices stop.

We wait for someone to reply before he asks again a little louder "Rick?"

We hear steps outside and then we see Rick looking in carefully with his gun ready.

He blinks a few times. Looks like he's trying to wake from a nightmare.

He looks at us for a moment from top to bottom.

He lowers his weapon "Come on out." He says.

Glenn and T-Dog join him. I see how Daryl puts his crossbow down.

"You're alive..." Glenn mumbles looking at us in surprise.

I keep my gun up until Daryl hits me slightly.

* * *

I'm sitting on the counter watching how Daryl and Rick talk. I'm still mad at them.

I had my anger fit about what a bitch Lori is and what a bunch of fucking assholes the rest of them are too a few minutes ago but Rick and my brother managed to calm me down.

He is convincing my brother of joining the group. He knows that if one of us goes the other will follow.

Rick gave us ammo.

Once again the sheriff helps us without thinking about it.

As much as I want to he gives me no reason to hate him.

Maybe being mad at him and avoiding him but not hating him.

Same to the rest of them. Leaving us wasn't their choice. It was Lori's. Carol even wanted to stay with us.

T-Dog is looking outside in case something happens.

"We went looking for you a few weeks ago but you weren't there." He says looking concerned. "There were too many of them. We thought..."

Daryl nods. "I fed them. I don't think they've moved at all."

Rick snorts shaking his head "They're still there."

"Well, then y'all can't go back that way, can you?"

"No. _we_ can't" Rick says "you're both included, remember? You're still part of the group."

I gotta admit, it's impressive how he's still trusting us after seeing my bite and listening to the 'human bite' explanation.

Did he truly believe us? He is risking others by just trusting us on this...

I look down to my arm feeling lucky I have my jacket on. If were going with them; which I think is going to happen, I don't want to know how the rest of thr group will react when they find out about the it.

"I still can't believe you made it. you were pretty much done last time we saw you." Glenn says looking at me. We all look at him

"I wonder why." I say in a bad mood

Rick walks closer to me. He says he's sorry for what happened.

I just look at him with no expression at all. I raise my eyebrow.

"I assure you no one will be left behind again" he says

"We'll see about that" I say.

"Oh, come on. It'll be cool to have you guys back" Glenn tries to cheer me up.

"I just hope you're right, man." T mutters


	27. Do you even know?

_**Hello again!**_

 ** _I know this is like a super mini chapter, but My mind's been busy on Jane Two and I just cant stop reading! Im almost done with it so I promise you another chapter tomorrow or the day after, a long normal chapter._**

 ** _Anyway, I managed to bring you this! I read some reviews saying that they couldnt wait for her to face Lori... Or meet Lori? Something like that._**

 ** _Mac's sadist bitch side comes out right here! Plus, I brought you a bonus in case youre interested, At the end of the chapter I left some info on Mac's weapons for you to know them better. So, in case you're interested on checking that out go ahead at the end of the chapter!_**

* * *

 **18 hours after the bite...**

I try to keep myself awake as I hug my brother's waits resting the right side of my head on his back to keep my balance on the motorcycle.

I'm honestly clinging to him like a monkey in case I fall asleep.

In between the sound of the wind and the roaring of the bike I can hear his strong heartbeats. They're not fast, just strong, as if his heart just wanted to jump out of his chest and run away.

It makes me feel safe. Makes me feel like when I was little for some reason.

Maybe it unconsciously reminds me of something...

I don't know. But for now, I just concentrate on keeping myself awake.

After what seems like hours to me I feel the bike stop completely and the engine stops. I lift my head to see whats going on noticing how Rick's car stops too and the three of them come out of it.

Daryl and I stay on the motorcycle until Rick tells us we have to walk from here.

We nod. I wait for Daryl to get off the bike first for then putting both legs on the same side of the vehicle and slide down a little putting both feet on the ground.

I take a deep breath and walk behind Daryl following our leader and friends through the woods.

"Keep your jacket on" Daryl whispers to me when we see Maggie running to Glenn and how they kiss and hug. I frown wondering why he said that.

We keep walking and stop to take a look at an old and pretty much destroyed cabin. T-Dog, Glenn and Maggie walk inside.

"Why should I keep it on?" I whisper full of curiosity. Not because I want to question him, but because curiosity is eating my insides. I hate being so curious but right now I just want to know what's his plan.

Is he not trusting the group?

"The bite. They don't need to know yet." He replies quietly.

I nod even though I don't understand why. Rick knows about it anyway and Glenn and T-Dog heard everything.

They don't seem to care and I'm sure Glenn will end up telling Maggie, who will tell Hershel, who will tell Carol, who will tell Lori that I have a bite on my right arm. Thats when shit's gonna get interesting.

"Come on in" I hear Rick say. I start walking again.

Rick doesn't even hugs or kisses or talks to Lori when she walks out of the cabin. They just look at each other for a minute.

I find that weird. Rick used to love his wife more than anything in the world... Except for Carl... He's always loved Carl more.

Lori is heavily pregnant now. She puts a hand on Rick's shoulder but he ignores her and hugs Carl instead while Daryl and I watch them.

When we step into the cabin all of them turn their heads to us automatically and widen their eyes in shock. As if they were seeing a ghost, or better yet, the devil.

Carol stands up. I smirk in her direction watching how she runs to us to hug us with all the strength she has in her thin body without paying attention to the dry blood in our clothes and the scratches on my face from the fight I had yesterday. Daryl grunts when she wraps her arm around him and I hug her back as with my healthy arm as tight as she does to me.

I am just realising I'm now almost as tall as Daryl, who is now I think about 4 inches taller than me. He's always been 5'10" since I remember.

I remember reading some of my papers in the hospital back in Atlanta. I was 5'3".

Did I really grew up this much in only one year? I don't think I'll grow much anymore anyway.

I look up and the first thing I see is Lori, or as my brothers call her, Bitch Queen and her shocked look. I glare at her with a serious and mad expression until she looks away.

Carol lets go of us.

"Thank God you're safe!" She backs up to look at both of us with teary eyes. "I was so worried."

We only look at her.

"How?" Lori asks at Rick looking desperately for an answer. He shrugs.

"We found them near Atlanta" He says. I feel like an object because of how that sentence appeared in my brain. 'Found them'... I guess there's no other way to put it. They did find us.

I can almost feel how uncomfortable my brother is right now with all the attention on us.

"We'll talk about it later. Now is not the moment." Rick tells his wife.

He tells Hershel to take a look at me and goes outside taking my brother with him.

* * *

I open my eyes to a gentle touch. It is Carol offering some water.

I smile and take it. I drink emptying the bottle in seconds and give it back to her. She smiles and walks away.

"I'm so glad you're safe" I hear Lori say and start feeling something burning up all the way up from my feet. I really dont know why, this heat making me feel more angry than ever in my entire life. I stand up to approach her stopping right in front of her with an eyebrow raised without even stoping to think about it or what consequences it may bring.

"I thought you were dead" she talks a second time.

"I thought you were different" I reply in a calm tone. "I though the group mattered to you but I guess I was wrong."

"What?" She asks surprised. Was was she expecting? Me running to her telling her that everything is fine? Fuck no!

"It was very nice of you leaving us back there. I see how much you care about us" I say

"Of course I care! You both made it, thats all that matters" she tells me still in shock

"Both of us made it." I scoff and walk around. I turn back to her and growl "No shit, Sherlock."

"Mac" Hershel calls me seeing how mad I am ticking loudly like a time bomb but before he can say something else Lori speaks again.

"How? Why?"

"Why? You're making it sound like you wanted us to die back there. You wanna know why we survived?" The group members look at me standing right in front of Lori

"Because of him!" I roar pointing back and out to my brother, who is still outside talking to Rick. "He risked his ass day and night because of you!"

"Mac..." Glenn calls me and starts getting closer. I stop him pulling my knife out.

I'm really not threatening anyone, but I'll need it to put this bitch in her place.

I growl looking at him "don't you dare getting close to me!"

I look at the rest of the group. "I'm sure you had to deal with walkers. Maybe you were hungry. Maybe you were thirsty. But how many times did you have to worry about humans? Did another human tried to kill you while we were gone?" The looks on their eyes give me the answer I'm looking for.

Not even once.

"Did one of you have to fight or kill another human being, or watch how one of you kills someone to save your sorry ass from being shot to death? Cause I did. Less than two days ago."

No one responds.

"Did anyone of you had to spend hours, sometimes days, alone? injured? Maybe Both? Unable to move? Unable to hunt? Fearing the other is dead somewhere and as a consequence you are too?"

No one responds, no one moves. They just stare at me, or down to the floor.

"How about coming back tired and feeling like shit after being awake for days straight and finding nothing to eat, not being able to think other than what you're gonna do if you find the only person you have left dead or as a walker? I'm pretty sure my brother can describe that feeling pretty well."

They keep quiet so I look back to the pregnant woman in front of me with really angry eyes

"Do you even know what really happened to us? Did you even care? You really have no fucking idea of what we went through while you were worrying about who real baby daddy is or how you're gonna convince him that you're carrying a kid that not even you can determine who was the guy to put it inside you, but you assure him it is his. And believe me, I don't think you ever will have an idea of who's it is, or find who you slept with that night." I clean my eyes and take a deep breath.

Oh, I know I'm dead for saying this in front of Carl!

I take my jacket off and lift my arm showing the bandage with a red spot on it.

"Do you even know what this is?" I ask her and get even closer to her. Carol covers her mouth with one of her hands. The whole group gasp. "This is a fresh bite. Y'all wanna see it closer don't ya'? It ain't harmful, but still makes y'all lose your minds and freak out ignoring the fact that it was a human that bit me. This bite is why Daryl cut a woman's throat yesterday and shot her in the head twice afterwards right in front of me. Do you know the sound of someone trying to breathe with their neck open? Have you ever seen that kind of terror in someone's eyes? This bite is the reminder of the shittiest winter of my entire, miserable life that will also stay with me until I die. So you should really consider yourself lucky we made it," I say to Lori "otherwise our deaths would've been your fault, and our blood would be on your hands, you selfish bitch. Don't act all surprised and happy to see us cause I know you ain't. I know what kind of asshole you are."

* * *

After all I said to Lori I've never seen Rick and Daryl so angry. Specially Daryl.

I'll have to be where they can see me, with one of them as a nanny for a few weeks or until I apologise. Not gonna happen, so I guess I'll stick to them for months.

Goodbye life... Or what was left of it... I regret nothing.

* * *

 **Mac's Weapons:**

 **-Knife:**

 **Smith & Wesson Special Ops M-9**

 **Blade: 7.8"**

 **Overall: 12.8"**

 **Handle: Nylon Fiber**

 **Weight:14.6 oz**

 **Other: 400 series stainless steel.**

 **-Beretta:**

 **Beretta 92 FS**

 **Weight: 2.13 lbs**

 **Overall length: 8.5 in.**

 **Barrel length: 4.9 in.**

 **Capacity: 15 rounds.**

 **Other: Non-reflective black coating finish, short recoil operative, semi-automatic.**

 **Suppressor: AAC EVOLUTION 9MM SUPPRESSOR**

 **-Revolver:**

 **S &W 500 magnum**

 **Weight: 72.5 oz**

 **Overall length: 15"**

 **Barrel length: 8.38"**

 **Capacity: 5 rounds**

 **Other: Exposed hammer, satin stainless finish, Made specially for hunting.**

 **in case you were wondering, yes, I read the guidelines and this is not against it. —**


	28. Woodbury

Hershel and I sit on a table in the hall. Carl and Beth are there too.

Carl is still a little absent and Beth is trying to mix something in a pot.

I am sitting next to Hershel and holding the Lil' Ass-Kicker. I look at the little girl with a smirk in my lips.

Hershel taught me how to feed her when we came back from the lower levels. Carl, Oscar and I.

Daryl wanted to stay down there. He seemed so angry when we found Carol's knife that we decided to not mess with him when we told us to leave.

I believe he'll be fine anyway. I hope so.

Ass-Kicker stretches her little arm and puts her small hand on my cheek. I smile.

"She likes you" Hershel tells me making me feel proud of myself.

I know she's a new born and probably she's just reaching for something to grab to feel safe, but still. I am absolutely in love with this soft fragile baby.

I smile "Do you, Ass-Kicker?" I ask looking at the girl that is now trying to grab with my hair.

I turn my head to the gate leading to the lower levels when I hear it opens. My smile fades and I feel guilt again

Rick stands there watching us.

We look at him quietly watching how he walks to me and stands nearby watching his kid carefully.

I look at him nervously and walk closer to hand him the baby.

I just hope he doesn't blame me for killing Lori. It looked like it last time I saw him and I really don't want him to hate me for something I didn't do... Did I?

We look at each other for a bit, then he reaches for his kid.

Rick hugs his little girl in a way only a father would. "Thank you" he tells me with a quiet and still sad tone in his voice

Is he thanking me for helping Maggie save Ass-Kicker? Or for just handing him the baby?

"Nothing to thank for" I say and pause. "Hey, I'm truly sorry for what happened. I swear I didn't want..."

"I know." He interrupts me "I know, you're good. Maggie talked to me...I don't want to talk more about it" Then he looks around and walks to the main entrance.

I look at him absently.

Ok...

We follow him

"She looks like you." Rick says smiling to Carl once we're out. He looks a little better now.

Daryl was right, he just needed to be alone for a while.

I look around the clean yard. Glenn and the others made a good work clearing it out.

My eyes stop when they meet the walkers outside once more.

I cant stop eyeing them... Never underestimate them.

I see one in particular walking slower. This one caught my attention because its holding something red.

Can walkers grab stuff? Or more like, are they interested on objects?

I look at it for a moment forcing my eyes to see whats far away from us trying to figure out whats wrong with it.

The walker is not growling either...

Holy shit... That walker is not a walker. It is a woman.

Alive.

I turn to look at Rick. Is he seeing this?

His attention is still on his baby.

"Rick," I call. He looks at me. I point my finger to the human clinging to the fence "please tell me you can see her too..."

* * *

"Carl, get a blanket." Rick says walking into the cell block hall with the dark skinned woman on his arms.

She just passed out. Tried to fight them walkers when they noticed she's not one of them but she couldn't.

Her leg has a gunshot wound and they smelt her. Maybe she passed out from the pain and blood loss? I'm not sure.

We took care of the walkers and Rick brought her in.

"Beth, water and a towel." Rick commands

"Here?" I ask helping Carl extend the blanket on the floor.

Rick nods putting the lady on it. "She's not coming in the cell block"

I walk a few steps back watching how Beth brings the water and Rick pours it on her slowly.

I wonder who she is... what was she doing out there? Why was she carrying formula for Ass-Kicker?

I don't like this

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Steady now." Rick commands when she starts waking up "It's all right. It's all right."

The woman tries to get away from Rick. He tells her to look at her.

"Who are you?" He asks

She sees her sword and tries to grab it but he kicks it away

"We're not going to hurt you unless you try something stupid first, all right?"

She looks at Rick angrily. I get it, we're complete strangers to her. I don't blame her

I stare at her while she looks around.

"Rick." I hear behind me and turn.

Hello brother. Feeling better?

"Who the hell is this?" Daryl asks frowning and maybe as careful as the woman on the floor.

I look back to the woman. She's looking at Daryl, then at Rick, then back to Daryl, then back at Rick.

"You wanna tell us your name?" Rick asks

She just looks at him with the same angry look. Rick sighs and looks at Daryl with a look that says 'I have no idea'

Daryl chews on his lip for a bit. Looks like he's thinking how to say what he wants to say.

When he's done he says "Y'all come on in here."

"Everything all right?" Rick asks a bit concerned

"You're gonna wanna see this."

All of us look at Rick and the woman. He nods. He tells Carl to take the stuff in and me to keep the katana safe.

I nod and take it ignoring the looks that the woman is giving me.

We follow daryl and hear Rick say before following us

"The doors are all locked. You'll be safe here."

I wait for Rick at the entrance and look at them.

He points at her leg "And we can treat that"

"I didn't ask for your help"

Wow, she actually speaks!

"Doesn't matter. Can't let you leave" Rick tells her and stands up to follow us locking the door behind him.

* * *

Daryl is leaning on the doorframe... If you can call it that...

He looks at us with a proud grin.

I walk in the cell first when I see whats going on in there

I rush into the cell and hug her. She wasn't even on her feet yet but I couldn't stop myself.

"Hey!" She greets and hugs me tightly but at the same time weakly.

When we let go of each other I can see how dehydrated she was.

I'm just so happy to see her alive!

"Poor thing fought her way to a cell. Must have passed out. Dehydrated" Daryl says looking at Rick when Carol stands up looking at all of them.

Rick smiles and approaches her. They hug each other too.

Carol gasps when she sees the little Ass-Kicker in Beth's arms.

She seems to be happy until she looks around shocked. Lori is not here.

Carol looks at Rick in shock and apologises.

Rick is silent. He just nods and tries to change the topic.

I don't know what to think. I'm just happy that Carol is still alive.

* * *

We decided to let the lady think things throughout the night. We need to plan this properly in order to get our people back safely.

Today we'll go get them... Somehow...

I am siting on the stairs. I sigh examining the Katana we took from the woman in the hall.

She's being stitched by Hershel.

She is looking at me with those angry eyes she has. I look back to her the same way.

We look at each other for what seems like minutes until I look down and put the Katana next to me on the floor.

"Hey" I hear besides me.

It's Beth. She sits next to me.

I smile to her "hey."

We look at the woman in front of us.

"What do you think?" Beth asks after a while

"About her? I don't know." I say

"I'm kind of worried about Maggie" she says "you think she did something to them?"

"No." I say "But I think she might know what actually happened to them. I just hope she's not one of the bad guys. Im not ready to go through all the Randall stuff again"

"I hope so too." She says.

Beth looks at the Katana and asks if that's hers. I nod.

I take the katana again and hand it to her.

Beth takes it carefully and looks at it like I did before.

"Daryl's crossbow is not the coolest weapon around anymore" she jokes

I chuckle "just don't tell him. You don't want to hear him whining about it. Trust me"

We laugh

Beth hands me the weapon

"Where's Ass-Kicker?" I ask putting the sword back on the floor.

"Carol." She smiles "She just can't stop playing with her. Apparently it's story time."

I smile and Beth keeps going

"You know, Little Red Riding Hood."

My smile fades. I try to figure out what that means.

I look at Beth "Little Red...Riding..who?" I ask her hoping she explains what that means. She frowns.

She looks at me like she can't believe something

"What?" I ask confused

"You don't know Little Red Riding Hood."

I shake my head

"It's a fairytale." She says "About this little girl with a red cape carrying a basket with food in it for her grandma? The wolf and all that?"

We look at each other. I have a blank expression on my face.

"No?" She asks raising her eyebrows

I frown "what are you talking about?"

She looks incredibly surprised "how come you've never heard of it?"

"Never really heard of any fairytale" I tell her and try to explain. "I remember bits and pieces of the one about the apple that put a lady to sleep until a prince that had to climb up her hair woke her up by putting a shoe on her left foot... Or...was the prince a beast or something like that?"

"No, no. Those are all different stories" She says looking at me amazed by my... I guess...ignorance on kid stuff?

I honestly don't know how to call it. But, really? Different stories?

What the..

"No fucking way. You gonna tell me the story doesn't end up being bloody and shit? Like, no one dies? Are you serious?"

"Bloody? What did Daryl do to you? Fairytales are supposed to be for kids! Theres no blood in them! And yes, those are all different stories! The apple was for is snow white, the sleeping beauty is another one, the one with the long hair is Rapunzel and the one with the shoe is Cinderella. All those stories are all different and have handsome princes in them, the beauty and the beast is the only one with a beast but the true love kiss turns him back into a handsome prince. No one ends up dead in any of the stories"

"What about the witch? Is she murdered by the beast?"

"No!"

"Well, shit." I chuckle. "Guess I never heard any of those then."

"Wow." She tilts her head and asks "what kind of brother tells a baby all that stuff?"

I sigh and look away avoiding her question.

Merle did...

* * *

"We can tend that wound for you. Give you a little food and water and then send you on your way" Rick tells her "But you're gonna have to tell us how you found us, and why you were carrying formula"

I look at my brother in complete confusion. I thought Rick said she couldn't leave.

I turn my attention back to the woman when I hear her talk.

"The supplies were dropped by a young Asian guy with a pretty girl"

Glenn and Maggie.

Rick looks at Hershel, who looks worried.

"We know that. Glenn and Maggie" Daryl says

"Didn't catch their names" she growls

"What happened exactly?" Rick asks.

"They were taken" she says making Hershel even more worried

"Taken? By who?"

"By the same son of a bitch who shot me."

"Who says you ain't lying?" I ask

Both Daryl and her give me a death glare

"I'm telling the truth."

"You tell us what really happened. Now." Rick demands and suddenly grabs her injured leg.

There he goes again. Using pain to get the truth.

"Don't you ever touch me again!" She gets up and threatens Rick.

I put my hand on my holster. Daryl draws his crossbow and points it at her.

"You better start talking. You're gonna have a much bigger problem than a gunshot wound" Daryl tells her.

"Put it down" Rick says pushing the weapon down and turns back to the lady "Now, where are our people?"

"Go find them yourself." She says angrily

I roll my eyes.

"You're here for a reason" I tell her "no one brings food just to greet the new neighbours anymore. You know where our friends are."

She looks at me and after a while she smirks. "Smart kid"

Rick growls. She looks at him and starts talking while she leans on a table near her "There's a town. Woodbury. About 75 survivors. I think they were taken there."

Rick frowns "A whole town?"

"It's run by this guy who calls himself the Governor. Pretty boy, charming, Jim Jones type."

Who the fuck is Jim Jones? Everyone seems to understand but me...

"He got muscle?" My brother asks.

"Paramilitary wannabes. They have armed sentries on every wall."

"You know a way in?" Rick asks and she nods

"The place is secure from walkers, but we could slip our way through."

"Wait. How'd you know how to get here?" I ask her feeling suspicious. How do we know this is not a trap?

"They mentioned a prison. your friends. Said which direction it was in, that it was a straight shot."

I stop chewing on my lip when I notice my brother is doing the same.

Oops.

I don't like what she said. Glenn and Maggie talked?

* * *

"How do you know we can trust her?" Rick asks us.

We're all reunited in the cell block talking about what we're gonna do.

Should we trust her?

What should we do to her?

I'm still not sure if she's leading us into a trap.

Beth steps forward"This is Maggie and Glenn. Why are we even debating?"

"We ain't." My brother says "I'll go after them"

"I hate staying." I nod "If he goes I go"

Rick sighs and puts his hands on his hips. "Well, this place sounds pretty secure. You both can't go alone."

I smirk.

We're going!

* * *

Daryl opens the trunk of the Hyundai to get our bags inside the car.

I put Rick's and mine in.

"You got the flash bangs and tear gas. I got the rifles, ammo and pistols. Never know what you're gonna need." Rick tells my brother when he takes another bag. Daryl nods

"i got it"

Carl takes the last bag to put it in the car. My brother helps him lift it.

He tells him to not worry about Rick. He says he'll keep an eye on him.

Carl nods and walks away.

He's been looking worried since Rick made a group to go get Maggie and Glenn and said he was coming.

He walks back to Rick and they talk while we get everything ready.

We wait for Rick to come back and take a weapon to bring with us inside the car.

Rick just gets in the car with his python in his holster like always.

The samurai lady never lets go of her sword and Oscar says he's gonna wait until we get there to take a gun.

Daryl takes the crossbow.

He wants me to keep both my guns even through Rick said he'll give me a shotgun.

I leave my guns in the bag but put my knife in one of my boots.

I look at Daryl. He nods to me and gets on the car.

I close the trunk and get on the back seat with the black lady.

* * *

"Welcome to the middle of fucking nowhere" I joke when Rick stops the car and we get down.

We ignore a single walker that tries to keep up with us. We're used to them, and its just one. Not like it'll kill us.

I look around while my brother gets the bags down. There's nothing but trees around us... And Jimmy. Thats how I decided to name the walker.

Rick looks up to the sky and asks the woman "How far? Night's coming"

He looks back to Daryl and walks to get guns for us too.

"It's a mile. Maybe two" she replies adjusting her katana

"Mac" Rick calls me. I turn around and walk to where they are.

He hands me a pump-action shotgun.

I recognise this thing. Mossberg 590.

This right here was Shane's shotgun.

"The kickback is strong but I think you can handle it." Rick says "Just take it easy."

"I will" I say taking the weapon

Before he lets go of it he warns me "You stay with us. No chasing. Understood?"

I nod "Alright"

As long as they don't kill anyone, they wont give me a reason to do that.

We walk into the woods following the woman. Oscar and Rick walk behind her and Daryl and I go last.

I look up while walking. I see the clear sky and the green trees.

I chuckle.

"What?" I hear my brother asks me and look at him.

"Nothing" I say. "I just like being outside."

He nods and looks forward again.

I love being outside. I love the woods and nature.

The prison is just too boring and grey for me but it keeps us safe at least.

If we're gonna be in that prison forever I guess I'm gonna miss going hunting and walking around the woods... Maybe I can still go out sometimes. Feel free.

Who knows?

"Hey" I hear Rick call and walk faster.

I know he wants to talk to Daryl so I walk next to Oscar now to let them talk.

"I heard what you did for me, for my baby. while I was...working things out" I hear Rick say "Thank you"

"It's what we do." My brother replies.

Yeah. But I was still surprised by him taking the lead. I'm glad its over.

I hear something. I whisper our leaders name.

We all look around.

Something steps on a stick and breaks it and then we hear the growls.

"Shit." Daryl says "down"

"Get in formation. No gunfire." Rick says.

I think of a way of getting away without having to waste time here.

I walk away from them

"Mac!" Rick calls angrily

"There's too many of them." I explain "We can avoid them. This way."

Daryl nods and walks past me. They follow us.

"Through there. Come on." My brother says as we reach an old cabin

"Get the door." Rick commands.

Oscar opens the door and we lock ourselves inside. Seconds later all the walkers do all they can to get in.

I clear my throat. I can't breathe, it smells terrible in here!

Daryl frowns putting one of his hands in front of his nose to ease it. "The smell!" He says

"What the hell is that?" Oscar asks pointing his light at some dead animal.

"It's got to be a fox" I say "or what's left of one."

Its got a collar around its neck... Puppy...

"I guess Lassie went home." Daryl jokes.

I give him an angry look. He snorts because of it.

I hate seeing dead dogs. I love dogs.

"Who the hell are you?" I hear.

I rush back to where Rick is.

There's an old man pointing a shotgun at him so I point mine back.

"We don't mean any harm." Rick says

"Get outta my house!" The man yells

"We will, but we can't right now."

"Now!"

"Shut him up." The black lady says looking back at the doors

"Get out right now!" The man insists

"There are walkers outside." I tell him

"I'll call the cops!"

"I am a cop." Rick growls "Now I need you to lower the gun."

The man gets closer to Rick "Show me your badge."

I get closer to him too

"All right. Put the shotgun down" Rick looks at me.

I hesitate.

I don't want anyone getting hurt so I obey.

"Your badge!" The man yells

"It's in my pocket." Rick says with his hand up "It's in my pocket. Now, I'm just gonna reach down"

Rick lowers his hand down "nice and slow." He says and then hits the man making him turn.

Daryl ducks just in time when the man shoots in his direction.

"Help! They found me!" The man runs

Who the fuck is he talking about?!

"Help me!" He yells and tries to open the door.

"Don't open that door." Rick yells

All of us try to catch the man but suddenly he has a sword going right through his torso.

The man falls dead.

The lady shakes the blood off her sword and looks at us.

Daryl kneels and takes the guy. He asks if we remember the Alamo.

Rick nods.

Huh? No way!

"Help me with the door."

"You've gotta be kidding." Oscar says clearly uncomfortable by all this.

"He's dead." Daryl says.

Rick look at me and how I am looking back at them completely weirded out by the situation.

What just happened?

"Check the back" he commands.

I nod and walk back feeling everyone's looks on me.

I open the back door. I peek my head out carefully and look both ways.

I look at Rick "clear"

"Ok" he says putting his hand on the handle "One, two, three."

He opens the door and Daryl shoves the dead man out to distract the walkers.

They slam the door closed and we rush out through the back door.

We run away from the cabin while the walkers eat.

We're back on our way to Woodbury.


	29. Looking death in the eye

The five of us are kneeling behind an old jeep. Just there, watching, trying to figure out how to get inside the wall in front of us.

Rick looks concentrated.

I just hope this isn't a bad idea...

The black woman moves suddenly. She turns and walks away.

"Hey!" Rick whispers to her

"Damn it." I curse and try to go get her but Daryl grabs my backpack and pulls me back. I look at him. He fucking did it... AGAIN!

Dont pull me, Damn it!

"The fuck are you doing?" My brother asks angrily

"I said no chasing" Rick tells me in an angry tone

I sigh annoyed

"I thought we had that clear" He says

"Yeah, I got it" I tell him feeling annoyed

We look back at the walls waiting for our leader's orders

"Ain't no way we're gonna check in all them buildings," Daryl notices "not with all them guards there."

Rick nods.

We get ready to bounce out but something walks behind us. We turn ready to kill whatever is there but stop when we see the weird woman.

We look at one another.

She creeps me out a little bit...

'This way' she mouths without making any sound.

Rick nods. "All right, let's go."

We follow them.

* * *

"This is where you were held?" Rick asks when we enter what looks like a storage building.

Shouldn't there be someone watching all these things?

To be a town this big and with those walls they should be more careful. Maybe walkers don't open doors, but we do.

And they should fix those pieces of the wall that are not as high as the rest of it... Just saying...

I look around amazed by how much these people have.

"I was questioned." She replies

Daryl rushes to check on a window while Rick keeps asking "Any idea where else they could be?"

"I thought you said there was a curfew." My brother tells the woman after looking outside.

"The street is packed during the day. Those are stragglers."

Rick walks to where Daryl is and looks out too "If anyone comes in here, we're sitting ducks. We gotta move."

"They could be in his apartment." She says.

Who's? The governor's?

"Yeah? What if they ain't?" Daryl asks with threatening eyes

"Then we'll look somewhere else."she replies calmly

Rick and Daryl walk back to where We are leaving the woman surrounded in between us

"You said you could help us." Rick growls

"I'm doing what I can." She argues

"Then where in the hell are they?"

I look up. Hey! I forgot Oscar could talk!

"Hey" Our leader calls my brother and Oscar. They walk to the back of the room letting me to take care of the woman.

She looks at me and raises an eyebrow while they whisper back there.

"What you looking at?" I ask dryly

"Ain't you too young for this? You think risking you is a good idea?"

"Risking me?"

"Sending the kid to fight their battle, what kind group is that?"

"Why do you care?"

"I just think It would be devastating for your dad if something happens to you"

"Rick's not my dad." I say frowning "none of them is. my old man's dead"

The woman looks somewhere else seeming to understand that I really don't care as long as the rest of the group and my brother are safe.

Suddenly someone knocks on the door.

The five of us startle and look at it

"Shit." I whisper.

We run to hide like roaches in a kitchen When you turn on the lights and catch them on the counter.

* * *

"I know you're in here." A man says opening the door and walking in. He closes the door and turns on a flashlight "I saw you moving from outside."

He says walking around "All right, now. You're not supposed to be in here and you know it. Who's in here?"

"Shut up." Rick commands jumping on the man and shoving him to the wall with Daryl pointing at the man with his bow "Get on your knees." The guy does so "Hands behind your back. Mac, Zip tie him." Rick says.

I walk out of my hiding spot and obey quietly.

"Where are our people?" Our leader asks

"I don't know."

"You are holding some of our people. Where the hell are they?"

"I don't know." He insists

"Open your mouth." Rick commands forcing a rag into the guys mouth. He nods to Daryl.

My brother hits the back of the man's head with his bow. The man falls unconscious on the floor and they drag him further back inside the building.

I just look at them while oscar and the random woman come out too.

"Now what?" I ask Rick when they walk back to us.

He's about to reply but is interrupted my the sound of gunshots and the people outside starts running.

He walks to the door and peeks outside.

He looks back to us, nods and walks out. I grab the shotgun tightly and follow him and my brother.

I can feel how my blood starts rushing through my body mixing with adrenaline.

Shit's about to go down!

* * *

Were now in some... Hallways?

The walls are gross and they don't have much lighting.

Rick opens one more door and we walk in. Suddenly he stops. He presses his body to the wall.

We wait for him to move and follow him when he does. Weapons ready.

I can hear footsteps nearby and a man talking... We stop once more to try to listen to what he's saying.

I don't get nothing.

But that voice... It can't be...

I frown and look at Daryl. Am I going crazy?

I guess I am cause Daryl has no reaction about it. He tries to see from a small window behind Rick.

"On your feet, move." A man says.

No, its not him. My mind was just fucking with me...

"Let's go, come on." Another one says.

Daryl ducks again. He sighs "Shit."

They grab something from the bag quickly. I try to pay attention to what it was. I was distracted.

They throw something.

Ohhh... I get it.

We rush back into the hallway and a second later the explosion occurs blinding everyone in the other room. Then smoke comes out of the grenades and everyone coughs.

"I'll get Glenn" Rick says "Mac, get Maggie. The rest of you cover us"

We nod and walk through the smoke. I only identify Maggie because of the way she coughs.

She tries to back away when I touch her "No." I whisper and take her shoulder. I take the bag off her head. "it's me, lets go!"

I pull her closer to me and rush out with Rick and Glenn when the men start shooting.

We run out as fast as we can since Glenn seems to be badly hurt.

* * *

"Come on" Daryl growls when we run out on the streets

"Inside, quick!" Rick commands when we run by the first building we see.

Daryl kicks the door open and goes in first with his weapon up.

Glenn falls on the floor breathing heavily. Maggie reaches for him.

I hear the door close and look back. Rick is inside.. Good.

I look around too. I go to one side of the building and check through the door.

Just a bathroom.

"Ain't no way out back here." Daryl says.

"Same here" I reply

Rick shakes his head.

"Rick, how did you find us?" Maggie asks

"How bad are you hurt?" He asks

We walk closer to them to see how they really are.

" I'll be all right." Glenn whispers

"Hey!" I call everyone looking around "Where's that woman?"

Im starting to feel anxious. We're trapped.

"She was right behind us." Rick frowns and looks through the window.

"Maybe she was spotted." Oscar says

My brother walks closer to the door. I can hear the whole town out there by now "Want me to go look for her?" He asks our leader.

Please say no...

"No. We gotta get them out of here." He tells him. "She's on her own"

I let out a heavy but thankful breath

"Hey, Dixon." Glenn says. Daryl and I look at him.

Dixon? Him or me? Is he applying the Shane thing where I was Dixon and Daryl was Daryl?

Both of us walk closer to him.

"this was Merle." He says swallowing hard while Maggie tries to cover him with something.

We both freeze. We look at each other.

Umm.. Say again?

"It was. He did this" the Asian says

"You.. saw him?" I ask in shock

"Face to face." He says. I blink a few times trying to process the information "Threw a walker at me. He was gonna execute us."

I look at Daryl with wide eyes.

I cant believe what he's saying!

Merle?!

"S...So my brother's this governor?" Daryl asks raising his eyebrows. Seems like he's not believing it either.

"No it's somebody else." Maggie explains "Your brother's his lieutenant or something."

"Does he know we're still with you?" Daryl asks

"He does now." Glenn says and now looks at Rick "Rick, I'm sorry. We told him where the prison was. We couldn't hold out..

"Don't." Rick says walking back and forth "No need to apologize."

I'm still lost in my thoughts staring at nothing like a retarded person. I just can't move or react or nothing.

Merle's alive...

The whole year.. I thought...

How is this even possible?...

"They're gonna be looking for us." Maggie tells Rick

I turn my head slowly to look at them but still completely absent

"We have to get back." Rick says and rushes to Glenn "Can you walk? We got a car a few miles out."

"I'm good."

"All right." He says helping the asian man stand up

Daryl looks at me.

I really want to see Merle. If only just from the distance, see if he's fine.

I look down. I want talk to him. Ask him why he never came back.

My brother shakes his head and walks closer to Rick "Hey, if Merle's around, we need to see him." He says in a demanding tone

"Not now." Rick says "We're in hostile territory."

"He's our brother. I ain't gonna.."

"Look at what he did!" Rick growls angrily "Look, we gotta get out of here now."

I start to concentrate on my surroundings again and react to them. I look at Rick and position myself by my now anxious brother.

"If you let us go maybe..Maybe we can talk to him." Daryl insists "Maybe we can work something out!"

"No, no, no. You're not thinking straight."

I frown. What the fuck?

He's no one to decide that!

"Look, no matter what they say, they're hurt. Glenn can barely walk. How are we gonna make it out if we get overrun by walkers and this governor catches up to us? I need you." Rick explains "both of you. I need you. Are you with me?" He asks looking at both of us.

Daryl thinks for a few seconds while Rick waits for an answer. Then he replies "Yeah."

"Yeah?" He now asks me

I nod hesitantly. I hope Daryl has something in mind... "ok"

I put my beretta on the back of my jeans. I take a deep breath.

Daryl walks to me with his jaw tight. He just looks at me for a moment and then nods.

I look down for a second thinking about it.

I look back up to him and nod back.

I know what he meant. I know whats in his mind.

We're going to go get Merle.

* * *

"Y'all ready?" Rick ask positioning himself by the door. We move around him to head out "On three. Stay tight. One,"

I chew on my lower lip and he keeps counting "two"

I take a deep, deep breath and he says "three."

He opens the door

Daryl and I throw two more smoke grenades.

"Lets go" Rick commands

"There they are!" We hear the men yelling and the bullets start to fly.

I stay close to Daryl. He shoots the guys that are further with an automatic rifle. I kill the ones getting closer.

"Behind you!" My brother yells.

I kill a man behind Rick and turn to kill another one nearby but the shotgun only clicks.

"Shit!"

Rick kills him.

"Reload, I'll cover you!" He tells me.

I hold the shotgun with one hand I take my beretta with the other.

Its faster...

"Go! Get cover!" He yells to Maggie "We'll follow you"

She nods and runs with Glenn and once they're safe we follow.

We get to one side of a building

Daryl checks on his rifle. While Rick asks how many are still out there.

"Doesn't matter! There's gonna be more of them. We need to move." My brother replies

The shotgun is useless now. Seems like its broken.

I look at Glenn and Maggie holding each other tightly and reach the back of my jeans for my beretta.

I hand it to her "You got a better chance if you protect each other" I tell her

She smiles gently and takes it. "What about you?"

"I'll be ok. Got my badass weapon right here" I joke pointing towards my brother.

Maggie smiles. She nods and thanks me.

"Here," I hear Rick's voice "use this"

I look at him handing me his rifle. I thank him and take it while he takes his Python.

"Any grenades left?" He asks now. My brother checks and nods. "Get 'em ready. We gotta gun into the wall"

Daryl looks at me. "You ready?" He asks handing me my revolver

I nod. I put my holster on with the revolver inside

Rick frowns confused and Daryl tells him "You guys go ahead. We're gonna lay down some cover fire."

"No, we gotta stay together." Maggie complains

"Too hairy." Rick shakes his head

"We'll be right behind you." He tells them and now hands me a grenade. "Lets do this" he says.

I nod and repeat "Lets do this"

We throw the last grenades to the street and wait for them to cover us.

We run out and start shooting the last bullets inside our rifles.

"Let's get out of here! Come on!" I hear Rick yelling.

"Keep going!" Oscar yells and they disappear in the smoke

After a while I hear Oscar scream in pain.

They took him down.

"No!" I hear behind me.

I look back.

I see Rick staring at one guy in shock.

What the fuck?

"Rick!" Maggie yells.

I pull my revolver to run for the man but Rick takes care of it

I put my weapon away and grab the rifle tightly with both hands.

I keep shooting next to my brother.

I can hear them shooting behind me.

Daryl and I shoot side by side giving Rick time to escape.

Rick's shooting stops.

"Daryl!"

"We're fine!" My brother yells back. My rifle runs out of bullets.

I put it on the floor and take the revolver. I shoot with it.

I count the bullets I have left.

Four.

Three.

Two...

I hear a loud thud by my side and Daryl grunts.

I look at him on the ground breathing heavily and a man pointing his rifle to my brother's head.

I raise my revolver towards him.

"Put the gun down, beautiful" he says when I threaten to kill him with the last two bullets I have left.

"You're gonna kill him if I do." I hiss

"No." He says "he'll be fine, unless you do something stupid"

Daryl grunts again. I look down to him once more.

He shakes his head slowly.

I hear a weapon clicking and another man behind me says "Hands up. Nice and slow."

I do as he says.

"Now, thats a good girl" the man in front of me smiles. Then he nods to the other one behind me.

"No!" I hear Daryl scream. I feel a sharp pain on the back of my head.

Everything stops.

* * *

 **I hope y'all liked it :D**


	30. Betrayal

The first thing I feel is my head hurting like shit..I breathe deeply and slowly to try to help it.

I groan in pain.

I'm not brave enough to open my eyes yet. I know the light will make my head explode in pain.

"Rise and shine" I hear and a hand grabs my jaw.

I try to avoid it but it is impossible. My hands are tied back.

I open my eyes to look at whoever is bothering me. The voice says.

"Well, you do look a little like your brothers. Same eyes." The hands go away

There's a woman in front of me. She looks Hispanic, which for some reason doesn't surprise me.

I wonder where exactly I am. All I know is I'm tied to a chair and Daryl is nowhere to be found.

"Who are you?" I ask still half asleep

"Let's put it like this. I can be your best friend, or your worst nightmare. It all depends on you."

My heart starts racing almost to the point where I feel like its coming out of my chest. I feel the need to escape.

I'm not sure of what is this I'm feeling right now, but I don't like it.

I notice my feet are not tied.

"I heard you were young, but I never imagined a teen. What are you, 18? 19?"

17 last time I checked, maybe 18 by now. Now shut up let me see my brother.

"Merle never said how young you were"

I feel a rush of adrenaline and panic filling my body.

I look at her anxiously eyeing carefully every single one of her movements.

She asks me questions about the group and The prison.

I stay quiet.

After a while she seems to be losing her patience.

She looks young. Late 20s maybe early 30s.

I frown.

"I'm gonna ask you one more time. Where's Rick?"

"Who?" I ask acting innocent.

"Rick! Your leader!" She yells angrily

"I don't know no one named Rick" I lie just to make her mad.

"Lying puta!" I was right. She is hispanic.

I ask "why would I tell you where Rick is? Glenn already told y'all where the prison is located."

"Because I'll kill you if you don't" she says smirking

My heart skips a beat but I manage to hide it.

"Do you think my brother would let you?" She only looks at me while I talk "see, the thing here is I would love to trust you, but I don't. Just like I don't know where Rick is"

"Any ideas?" She asks

"Could be around here somewhere. Could be miles away from here by now. We all saw him run." My brain now brings the name 'Daryl' up. I frown slightly "You know, I'm not the only one that shot your wannabe army friends. Where's my brother?"

"What brother?"

"The one that was with me before y'all knocked me out"

"Before we knocked you out.."

"Daryl," I explain trying to seem like a brave badass not scared at all while she walks around me "5'10 tall, dark brown hair"

The woman chuckles "I don't know no one named Daryl"

"Oh for Fucks sake!" I roar. Is she doing the same I did?! "You do know bitch!"

"Oh yeah, The one with the crossbow. Same damn attitude."

"Where's is he?"

"Where's Rick?"

"Come on, you gonna start that again?" I roll my eyes

"Where's Rick?" She asks again. Her patience won't last long anymore. Both of us are pissed.

I shrug and shake my head "I don't know"

"Tell me where is he!" She yells bending to be face to face with me

"I said I don't know! Go ask your fucking mother, maybe she saw him recently!"

Her hand forms a fist and she hits me only once but firmly on the face.

I gasp looking away. I lick my lip feeling the iron taste of blood in my mouth.

I look up again with my headache getting stronger.

I grunt and try to convince myself that Merle wont let them kill me or Daryl, right?

She asks me where Rick is once more and I reply with the same question.

"Wheres my brother?"

I feel her fist on one side of my face.

Damn she hits hard!

By this point I'm not really scared. I just want her to stop beating me.

"That all you got?" I ask her when I meet her eyes again

"Don't act all tough"

"Why don't you untie me, see how tough I can be?"

He hits me again causing me to bite the inside of one of my cheeks and bleed more. I sniff to make sure my nose is not bleeding. I'm glad it's not because that means it's not broken.

"You're not gonna talk huh?" She asks.

I lick my lip once more and look up to get all the accumulated blood in my mouth to the back of my throat and swallow.

I look back down to her tasting my blood.

"Go fuck yourself" I reply. I could swear I have a bruise on my cheekbone now.

I'm actually more angry than scared and in LOT of pain but I need to keep my shit together.

What would my brothers do?...

I try to remember what Daryl did to Randall so I know what to do in this situation. Not so useful with this... Lady... but I know my brothers wouldn't talk so I'm not talking either.

The Door opens. A man with a bandage over one of his eyes comes in.

Both of us look at him

"she ain't talking" the hispanic says

The man nods. He says its ok. He says I'll talk

Why is she telling him. He the leader?

... Is this man The Governor?..

He moves behind me and unties me from the chair, however, my hands are still tied up together.

He makes me stand and puts something on my head to prevent me from seeing. I growl.

"Lets take a walk" he says pushing me slightly.

We start walking.

* * *

"I got you a present" I hear after a door opens and I hear Daryl's voice

The man takes the object off my head and shoves me forward. I turn my body when I feel myself falling to prevent myself from face-planting on the floor.

I land on my side and look up to Daryl.

He's tied to a chair like a was minutes ago.

His eyes show hatred against the governor and he breathes quickly but steadily.

His jaw is tight and looks like he's been beaten. Theres one or two scratches and a bruise on his face too.

Just like I did, he demands to see Merle but the men in the room just ask him questions about Rick and the prison.

There are a lot more men here that seem to have fun making my brother angry. By the way they act they make it clear that the man with the bandage really is the governor.

Daryl avoids all them until one of them kneels next to me. He puts me on my knees and asks again about our group.

"Don't fucking touch her!" Daryl yells

"There's your brother. Are you gonna say something now?" The governor asks me.

My head hurts too much. I only stare at my brother.

Daryl shakes his head to me and I reply softly "fuck you"

The governor nods and the guy hits me hard in the stomach

I grunt and feel the urge to throw up but my stomach is empty. I concentrate on getting air into me again.

I breathe deeply and swallow more blood.

"No!" Daryl yells "Mac, look at me" He calls for me to give him a reassuring look that I'm ok. I can hear how desperate and angry he is. "Look at me!"

I look up meeting my brother's gaze one more time. I'm fine... Or at least I think so...

I am just shaking. Daryl's yelling ain't helping my headache.

I blink a few times and call my brother's name. I want him to shut up.

"It'll be easy putting your bodies out in the woods. Maybe nearby the prison." The governor smirks and walks over to Daryl. Daryl tightens his jaw looking even more angry. "It would be interesting to see what your brother would do knowing the man you trusted killed you both"

Daryl and I look at each other for a moment but when the man next to me puts his gun to my head Daryl yells "Don't! get your hands off her! I'll kill you! I'll fucking kill you!"

They laugh.

"Don't worry" the governor tells me "you'll get to see Merle soon enough"

I look at my brother in the eye waiting for the man to shoot but instead they put something over Daryl's head, then they hit me with the back of the gun.

I fall on my side again. Everything is dark. I can still hear my brother yelling

I let out a slight grunt before passing out again.

* * *

The headache is still here. I open my eyes but can't see nothing.

Something is covering my head.

I try to listen to what's happening around me but only hear people cheering and a man talking.

"She's awake" I hear a woman say by my side and look in her direction.

"Finally" a man responds and someone puts a hand on my back. We start walking until the noise is super strong and I hear all the people cheering loudly.

My heart races again. My breathing becomes heavy and my mind looks for a way of getting out of this without success.

Where am I? What is happening?

The crowd calms a bit and the governor starts saying "What can I say? Hasn't been a night like this since the walls were completed." The crowd yells once more and is silenced after a few seconds again. "I thought we were past it..past the days when we all sat, huddled, scared in front of the TV during the early days of the outbreak. The fear we all felt then, we felt it again tonight. I failed you. I promised to keep you safe. Hell, look at me. You know, I should tell you that we'll be okay, that we're safe, that tomorrow we'll bury our dead and endure, but I won't, because I can't. Because I'm afraid. I'm afraid of them!"

Someone pulls the thing off my head like they did when they took me to Daryl. I frown and blink quickly since the light hurts my eyes.

I look around me.

I don't know how to describe this.

The people is surrounding us like in some sort of stadium or arena.

The only source of light are torches tied every certain feet.

The people starts screaming. "Kill her! Kill her!"

My heart beats even faster. I keep looking for a way out of this

"That's right." The governor yells to his people. "I'm afraid of terrorists who want what we have. Don't let the young face of this girl fool you! They want to destroy us! And worse because one of those terrorists is one of our own."

I see everything in horror until my eyes lock with a pair of familiar blue eyes staring at me in the same confusion and horror.

Merle?!

Oh my fucking God! Merle!

I grunt trying to fight the people behind me to go hug my brother. I just want to run to him, I need to know if this is real.

I just want to be with my brother.

I try to run but the same Hispanic woman pulls the ropes back holding me in place.

I look at him from head to toe. H.. His hand... What happened?

My eyes beg him to do something but he does nothing. I'm terrified by the fact that he's here just watching and not doong something about it.

His look changes from confusion and surprise to indifference. He shakes his head and looks away.

What?...

I stop moving.

The hell just happened? This is not the man that raised me.

That is not the Merle I love...

My Merle would never let anyone hurt me...

My brother frowns and looks at the governor surprised when he points at him and says "Merle, the man I counted on, the man I trusted. He led 'em here. And he let 'em in." The governor looks at him now "It was you."

Merle opens his mouth as if he's going to say something but closes it and looks back to me.

I keep looking at him to give me some sort of reassuring look telling me he's got a plan or something but I get nothing but indifference in return.

I feel the urge to cry. why is he doing this?!

I keep looking around feeling broken and betrayed but most of it, terrified. I need to get out of here before they execute me.

They bring someone else by my side grunting and fighting and wait until the governor demands to show his face like they did with me.

I know it is Daryl and Merle knows it too. He keeps looking at us like he doesn't care but I can finally see how scared he is.

I'd love to think he's scared for us, but looks like he fears for his life and his life only...

"You lied, betrayed us all" the governor tells him and turns now to us. He demands to show Daryl's face to the public now. "These are two of the terrorists. Merle's own siblings. What should we do with them, huh?"

Daryl looks around the way I did while the crowd yells "Kill them! Punish them!"

His eyes stare at Merle. He looks angry, surprised and sad at the same time.

I know he feels betrayed too.

"What?" The governor yells to his people "What you want?" And looks at us with a triumphant smirk.

The people keeps yelling and cheering "Kill them! Kill them!"

I'm so scared I feel the need to cry. I breathe heavily

Why is Merle doing this to us?

I look at Daryl. He turns to look at me too.

'We gotta get outta here' I try to say silently

'I'll think of something. Everything's gonna be ok' His eyes keep reassuring me. But at the same time they say 'I'm sorry... we're going to die' and he can't do anything about it.

"You wanted your brother and your sister" the governor says walking over to Merle. The three of us look at him in shock. He nods "Now you got them"


	31. Family

"Kill 'em! Kill 'em" the crowd keeps requesting and now Merle stands right in front of us.

He has no weapons. The governor took them and made him walk to where he is now.

I keep looking at him, waiting for him to do something since we are both tied and being watched closely.

Some random dude has my brother's crossbow pointed to my head. We know that trying something is useless.

I can hear Daryl's desperate breathing knowing he's somewhere in between confused and angry.

I think he's scared too. What do we do now?

The governor walks around us looking like he's enjoying to finally place himself back in front of us just and keeps watching us before he decides how he's going to kill us both... Maybe three.

I feel something hitting my face and look away quickly. My brothers look at me.

I felt something cutting the skin of my right cheek and now I feel a thin line of warm blood coming out of it. I see a sharp rock falling on the ground and rolling until Merle's feet stop it.

Oh, they're throwing stuff at us now? I tighten my jaw angrily.

"Let me go!" I hear an angry command from a female voice that I remember too well to just ignore and look for the source.

"Philip." Andrea says walking to the governor.

Was she here watching the whole time?

"Stay out of this." He says carelessly

"They're my friends." She tells him fighting the men that are trying to take her away.

"It's not up to me anymore." The governor growls and finally looks at her "The people have spoken"

"What?" She asks angrily

My brothers, Andrea and I watch carefully how 'Philip' moves again until he's face to face with Merle.

"I asked you where your loyalties lie. You said here."

My brother eyes him with an almost angry look, but still nods.

"Well, prove it." The man says raising his voice "Prove it to us all! Brother against brother."

"Yeah.!" The crowd cheers and they start untying Daryl.

A lady comes behind me too but instead of untying me she ties my hair into a ponytail leaving some shorter bangs down since they're not long enough and moves me to the side of the arena, where she uses a longer rope to connect to the small one around my wrists.

"Don't do this.." I tell Merle.

He seems to ignore me. Instead he looks at the governor and complains nodding to where I am now "what about her?"

Daryl looks from his wrists to me.

"Fight! Fight to the death!" The governor ignores him "Winner goes free"

I watch my brothers carefully feeling useless and super anxious.

"Philip please" Andrea keeps pleading.

Merle and Daryl look at each other. I watch them in horror while the whole town yells "Let's go Merle! Come on! Yeah, Merle, you can do it!"

They wouldn't kill each other. They will not hurt the other.

Daryl starts breathing faster.

"Ok!" Merle yells and everyone falls quiet. "Y'all know me."

I feel like my heart is gonna just explode inside my chest. My eyes start to burn.

"I'm gonna do whatever I got to do to prove that my loyalty..." He pauses. He looks down for a second.

Merle frowns and turns hitting Daryl as hard as he can straight in the stomach. Daryl grunts falling to the ground and coughs.

"No!" I scream and try to run to stop him but the ropes keep me from doing so.

"Is to this town!" Merle kicks him now. He rolls breathing heavily.

"No! Merle!" I keep yelling and struggling "stop!"

I scream my lungs out trying to free myself.

I widen my eyes when more people come bringing walkers with them. They tie one of them right next to me. The others are around my brothers.

Merle beats Daryl over and over again until with one swing from Daryl's fist Merle yelps and backs up.

My brothers keep fighting each other.

"Philip no, stop this! Philip, stop this!" I hear Andrea loud and clear.

Since my hands are tied back and I cant defend myself I kick the walker back

I look at Merle and Daryl. They're on the floor now.

Merle on top and Daryl on the bottom. My oldest brother looks like he's saying something but I can't hear with all the cheering and screaming.

I can't fight the walker like this.

I try to kick the undead. It grabs my leg and pulls to bite it.

I gasp losing my valance.

On the floor, I try to crawl away but it stands up and tries to eat me. I hold it with one of my legs not letting it kneel by mi side.

Fuck I'm risking a bite or a scratch on my leg.

I look back. My brothers are up now back to back and looking to me occasionally.

People are angry and try to fight them as everything turns into a complete chaos.

I concentrate on getting away from this asshole before he bites me.

Suddenly.. A gunshot.. And then more and more.

I look around to see what happened while the walker tries to bite my boot. I use my other foot to kick its face away from me.

Daryl appears out of nowhere. He stabs the walker and helps me up, then he turns me around and cuts the ropes quickly.

I see a man shooting with my revolver. I look around.

Theres a crowbar on the floor. I take it and run to get my weapon.

"Hey asshole!" I call making the man turn with all the intention to shoot me. I hit him as hard as I can and take my weapon. "Thank you"

I run back to my brother

"Come on, move!" Daryl tells me. He pushes me to where Rick is. I wonder where Rick came from.

Merle appears too and we run out of there but then stop in the middle of the town.

"Where?" Maggie asks Rick.

"They're all at the arena. This way." Merle tells us running past us but Rick stops him

"You're not going anywhere with us."

I frown and move in between them.

"Hey, you don't trust him. I'm mad as hell too, I get it. But you really want to do this now?" I say looking back to check if someone's following us. "We'll deal with Merle later, we gotta get the fuck out."

Rick frowns thinking about it while letting go of my brother. Merle runs to the wall.

"Come on!" Daryl runs too

We follow them.

* * *

"What the hell is he doing here?!" Glenn yells running to us with his gun up the moment he sees Merle.

"Hey!" I yell.

Daryl places himself in between and I raise one of my hands "Hey, put it down!" Daryl tells him.

Merle deserves being pointed at with a gun and more, but no Asian man is killing my brother.

"Whoa!" Rick reacts as well and tries to calm the Black woman too since she has the sword up too. He takes his python and points it at her.

"He tried to kill me!" Glenn yells "If it wasn't for him..."

"Put it down!" I command again with one hand up the other one touching my gun slightly

"He helped us get out of there." Daryl explains and Rick speaks firmly

"Yeah, right after he beat the shit out of you and almost got you and your sister killed."

"Hey, She can take care of herself! And we both took our licks, man." Merle says chuckling and making Daryl growl.

"Jackass."

I watch them carefully trying to make sure that no one hurts one of my brothers.

"Enough!" Rick screams looking directly at Merle

"Get that thing out of my face!" Daryl yells walking forward to Glenn. He backs up and does what I've been telling him since the beginning.

I lower my hand

"Man, look like you've gone native, brother." Merle teases

"Shut up, Merle." I tell him

"No more than you hanging out with that psycho back there." Daryl tells Merle. He seems super angry, and he has the right to be.

Fucking Merle, he's an asshole.

Everyone looks at Merle as he keeps talking.

"Oh, yeah, man. He is a charmer, I got to tell you that. Been putting the wood to your girlfriend Andrea." Merle moans sticking his tongue out towards the black woman in a way that makes me frown of disgust "Big time, baby."

"What? Andrea's in Woodbury?" Glenn asks surprised.

"Right next to the Governor." I tell him.

"You know Andrea?" Rick asks the woman but she keeps quiet. Like always...

What the hell is she thinking right now?

"Yep, she does." Merle keeps teasing. "Her and blondie spent all winter cuddling up in the forest."

He moans again. I roll my eyes and look at him annoyed.

"Merle, stop" I say angrily but he ignores me

"Yeah. My Nubian queen here had two pet walkers. No arms, cut off the jaws, kept them in chains. Kind of ironic now that I think about it."

"Shut up, bro." Daryl says trying to shut him up too

Aaand, he keeps talking.

Daryl said it. He's a jackass.

"Hey, man, we snagged them out of the was close to dying."

Why are we even trying? I mean, Merle Dixon is gonna say whatever the fuck he wants just because he enjoys making others mad.

Hell, he really needs to stay quiet!

"Is that why she's with him?" Maggie asks showing confusion in her eyes.

"Yeah. Snug as two little bugs." Merle says seeming to be in an awesome mood today.

I only wish he would shut up and listen to us.

"So what you gonna do now, Sheriff, huh?"

Oh hell, not Rick. Don't talk to Rick, you piece of...

Daryl and I just look at him with angry eyes hoping he shuts the hell up before someone has to do it. And by someone I mean Rick, he looks tired of this.

"Merle, stop it!" I tell him

"Surrounded by a bunch of liars, thugs, and cowards."

"Shut up!" Rick commands angrily.

Merle laughs at him. He's playing with fire here. "Oh, man, look at this.

Pathetic!" Daryl walks closer to Merle while he talks "All these guns and no bullets in them."

"Merle, shut up!" Daryl yells right to his face

"Shut up yourself!" He yells walking forward.

As much as I love him, this is just too much.

Rick walks to him looking like he's about to kill him. He hits Merle with the back of his gun and we all watch how my brother collapses on the floor unconscious.

Daryl nods to Rick thanking him for making him close his mouth.

"Asshole." Rick sighs and walks away.

* * *

"What are we gonna do now?" I ask Daryl privately before walking to where the others are.

We made sure Merle was fine and waited until he woke up. now we approach our people.

"We stay together" he tells me "He may have acted like an idiot, but I ain't leaving him behind."

"you think the others are gonna accept him?" I ask scratching the back of my head nervously

"We gotta try" he says and proposes it to Rick as soon as we get closer to them.

I let him do the talking.

* * *

"It won't work." Our leader says casually like it's not a big deal.

"It's gotta" my brother insists

"It'll stir things up." He responds

"Rick, the Governor is probably on the way to the prison right now."

"So?"

"Merle knows how he thinks and we could use the muscle."

"I'm not having him at the prison." Maggie speaks

"Do you really want him sleeping in the same cell block as Carol or Beth?" Glenn tells us making me mad. I frown and listen to Daryl.

"He ain't a rapist."

"Well, his buddy is."

"They ain't buddies no more." My brother tells him trying to convince them all. "Not after last night."

"There's no way Merle's gonna live there without putting everyone at each other's throats." Rick says

Daryl disagrees once more and frowns pointing at the woman with the katana "So you're gonna cut Merle loose and bring the last samurai home with us?"

"She's not coming back."

"She's not in a state to be on her own. She's injured." I tell them tired of just listening and making it obvious that they have to take her to the prison.

If they're taking her, why not taking Merle?

"She did bring you guys to us." Glenn tries to make a point but as always our leader has an answer for that too.

"And then ditched us."

"At least let my dad stitch her up." Maggie suggests.

"She's too unpredictable."

"Merle lead our way out of Woodbury" I remind Rick.

"That's right. Plus we don't know who she is." Daryl says going back to talking about our oldest brother "But Merle, Merle's blood."

"No" Glenn tells us "Merle is your blood. My blood, my family is standing right here and waiting for us back at the prison."

"And you're part of that family." Rick nods "But he's not."

"He's not." I repeat angrily and scoff

"Man, y'all don't know." Daryl tells them walking a few steps backwards. He stops and looks at me for a second before talking again. "Fine. We'll fend for ourselves."

"That's not what I was saying." Glenn widens his eyes

"No him, no me." Daryl says

"Daryl, you don't have to do that." Maggie says surprised

"It was always the three of us before this."

Rick and Daryl share uncomfortable looks wile Glenn and Maggie look shocked and confused

"Are you ok with this?" Rick looks at me

"I'm not leaving them" I reply

Theres no way I'm leaving my brothers alone, besides, I said I would give anything to get that asshole back. Maybe that something is the group.

Not everyone gets a second chance.

"You're just gonna leave like that? " Glenn asks us

"You'd do the same thing." My brother says calmly

"What do you want us to tell Carol?"

"She'll understand." He replies and looks at Maggie "Say good-bye to your pop for me. Thank him for all he's done for us"

Daryl touches my back slightly and starts walking. I follow him and the others start complaining again.

Rick runs to us but is unable to stop us. "There's got to be another way."

"Don't ask me to leave him. I already did that once."

"We started something last night. You realize that, huh?"

"No him, no me. That's all I can say." Daryl says opening the trunk of the car. He hands my bag and tells me to go wait for him with Merle.

I take it but wait for him right there.

"Take care of yourself. Take care of lil ass-kicker. Carl." He says looking at Rick with his bag now on his hand. He closes the trunk of the car and says before walking away. "He's one tough kid."

"Daryl!" Rick calls after him without getting a response

Rick and I look at each other. He hesitates a little and then hands me my knife.

I look at the weapon and then smile. I walk closer to him and give him a quick but tight hug.

"Thank you" I whisper.

With all the ups and downs, I gotta admit he helped us a lot.

I'm gonna miss this man.

"Princess!" Merle calls me so I let go of Rick and look at my brothers.

Daryl just looks at us waiting for me to move while Merle has a smirk on his lips.

I run to them.

Merle hugs the two of us and we start walking away

* * *

 **Merle's a F*** As***... I love him! (:**

 **Been super busy with school! Its the last two weeks so its been crazy!** **Wrote this one super fast because of that, But I hope y'all like it and enjoyed it.**

 **When the story started Merle was the favorite big brother. Who's Mac's favorite now, Merle or Daryl?**

 **BTW, Do y'all like the new image? Lucille is pretty badass, ain't she?**


	32. I'm not your baby girl

We walked for hours straight through the woods I think its past noon now... I wonder if Merle is not noticing that Daryl is keeping us near the prison.

Shit, he's not stupid. He knows. He's just ignoring it cause we're not officially walking back.

We're not walking back to it but we're still about a few hours away. Maybe 2 or 3 if we start running.

"So," Merle starts talking after hours of boredom "What was all that about, princess?"

"What?" I ask him

"Don't think I didn't see you and officer friendly back there."

I sigh and roll my eyes.

He doesn't look so happy about it.

Who cares is I see Rick as a father? I never had one anyway... Wait...

What the fuck is he thinking?

"You're getting the wrong idea..."

Merle keeps going

"What, You gonna tell me he and Darlena are a couple now?"

"What the fuck, man?" we hear Daryl say without stopping "You know I ain't no fag!"

"I hope so, baby brother. I really hope so. Seemed to me like a pretty straight forward hug back there with the sheriff"

What the fuck is wrong with him? "At least we didn't sleep with the governor for a piece of bread." I tell him in an annoyed way. "Did he cure your clap?"

They both stop walking. Daryl looks at Merle and Merle widens his eyes

Merle looks back up eyeing Daryl, with a super angry expression on his face. "What the fuck have you been telling my girl?"

Daryl grunts, rolls his eyes and keeps walking.

"Daryl!" Merle walks after him. I follow.

* * *

We stopped. Merle needed to pee.

I am leaning on a tree that helps me give my oldest brother some privacy.

Daryl walks around looking worried. He seems to be tracking something.

"There ain't nothing out here but mosquitoes and ants" he growls "were gonna fucking starve if we don't find something"

"Patience, little brother." Merle replies "Sooner or later a squirrel's bound to scurry across your path"

Daryl snorts not believing it. "Even so," He keeps looking around "that ain't much food"

Here we are again, just like at the beginning. Just the three of us.

Merle and Daryl disagreeing half of the time and I just listen to them until they piss me off. Shit, I dont know if I regret leavng the group for him...

I'm confused. Really confused... I love him, but at the same time I'm mad at him.

Merle may be the oldest, and maybe the toughest, he finds shelter protects us, but when it comes to getting food, Daryl and I have to do all the work.

I know most of the stuff he does for hunting and how to do it, but theres no hunter like Daryl and right now Merle's been acting like a total bitch.

I can see how angry Daryl is and I don't blame him. Big ol' Merle almost got us killed and still acts like he's the boss and deserves our services as if nothing happened all throughout the year. Not the mention the lack of sleep after that night we just had.

To be honest, I don't know if I regret going back for him and even better, leaving the group to follow him.

I don't know... I feel like this is not my brother...

I look at Daryl. I am tired, hungry and a little upset for just standing here wasting my time, which at the same time is good cause it allows me to think and put my shit together inside my head.

I came here cause I missed my brother. I need my brother, I love him.

He's my family. He's blood.

Merle deserves a chance.

I try to cheer Daryl up "Well, one squirrel is better than nothing"

"Damn right" Merle replies positively. I hear his zipper going up. He walks over to us and looks like he's about to say something but is interrupted by a the loud growling of my stomach.

"Sorry" I mumble looking down to my stomach when the two of them frown in my direction

"We've been out here for hours. Why don't we find a stream, try to look for some fish?" Daryl suggests.

I have never fished before.

The last time I ate fish was back then when Amy and Andrea did all the job for us. I'm not sure if I can fish. I don't know if Daryl or Merle can.

"I think you're just trying to lead me back to the road, man. Get me over to that prison. Back to your boyfriend Rick, Darlena." Merle finally states with a frown.

Daryl and I look at him while he kneels and checks the floor himself to make sure we're not lying.

"You both hanging out with micks now? You really wanna go back to a group that's full of democrats, niggers?" Merle stands back up and walks closer to Daryl "Even changing little Mac into something she's not. Thought I raised you better than that, Baby Brother."

"Merle, come on" I tell him trying to get him away from Daryl.

"They got shelter. Food. A pot to piss in. Might not be a bad idea" Daryl suggests with a calm voice and tries to ignore our brother's silent threat only making him snort.

"For you maybe. Ain't gonna be no damn party for me"

He's right on that.

Rick will not like it if we go back with Merle.

Then, theres the fact that we wont make it out here. Every one has found a group to rely on, and we dont have the chance to fight any of them for ourselves.

Maybe we can convince Rick. Prove to him that Merle is not the asshole he's been acting like for the past day. If only he would cooperate.

My brother wont ever stop being racist, vulgar or aggressive, but if the Ricktatorship changed me from being antisocial and Daryl from always wanting to kill someone, they can maybe change Merle too.

Daryl shifts looking uncomfortable and points his crossbow at nothing in particular.

I wonder whats going on in his mind right now...

Is he thinking of something?

"Everyone will get used to each other" he says not looking at us.

"Could work" I try to convince Merle but seems impossible

U"They're all dead. Makes no difference" Merle says. I freeze.

Merle knows the governor. What if he has a point?

What if he's right?

I try to push the idea away and hear Daryl ask "How can you be so sure?"

I wait for Merle to reply.

"Right about now he's probably hosting a housewarming party where he's gonna bury what's left of your pals."

Daryl frowns and after a moment of staring at our oldest brother angrily, He turns to me and nods to the other side of the woods.

"Lets look for some fish." He says to get me walking away from Merle.

Merle smiles.

* * *

I'm pretty sure I've seen a river or something that involves water somewhere around here. Daryl looks around too so I guess I'm not wrong and we're heading on the right direction.

After walking more time than I expected and have lost more hours of sunlight we can hear water nearby.

"Smells to me like the Sawhatchee Creek" Merle says making Daryl shake his head after rolling his eyes.

We stop to look at the water for a moment.

Its just a small muddy... Well, I would describe it 'puddle'. Big enough to get something or someone stuck, but too small for anything to live in.

Merle's right though, it smells odd but its not what we're looking for.

We moved closer to the prison and Merle knows it. He's still mad because of it.

Fuck him! Moving around doesn't mean that we're going back to the group.

Daryl said we're sticking together and thats what we're gonna do unless something goes down.

"We didn't go west enough. There's a river down there." Daryl says.

"You mean the Yellow Jacket?" I look up from the water to him. He nods.

"Thats the one."

Merle chuckles. He walks closer to us and speaks again

"You have a stroke, kids? We ain't even close to Yellow Jacket."

"Yeah of course. Because the man who spent months in christmas town still knows his way around the woods better than us" I tell him.

Daryl gives me a death glare that tells me to shut up.

"We didn't go west. Just a little bit south. That's what I think" Daryl reminds him.

I think he's trying to not get into a fight over who's got a better sense of direction.

But Merle is Merle.

Its always about fighting to prove he's better.

I remember, years ago when I was still little enough to not mess with them and just watch, they spent a week arguing about who was better at everything they could think of.

Who's better at playing pool? Merle

Who drank more alcohol without getting drunk? Merle

Who's taller? Both are the same size

Who could shoot better using only a handgun? Merle

Using the crossbow? Daryl

Who's stronger? Merle

Who cooked better Meth? ?.. Well, that was Jesse... I never saw My brothers consuming it though.

Who's dick is bigger? Yes, I know the answer to that. And it is Merle. Don't get me wrong, Daryl does not have a micro penis, trust me. But Merle's is bigger...

Let's just say Merle needed to learn how to lock the door and I spent all winter sleeping right next to Daryl to avoid freezing.

"You know what I think?" Merle starts talking snapping me out of my awkward memories "I may have lost my hand, but you both suck at this. You don't know where we are. You're such great hunters! I can guide us better than you do."

"Yeah, we'll see" Daryl mutters looking somewhere else seeming totally uninterested and paying attention to something more important.

Its actually nothing, but I know he just wants to stop listening to Merle, who keeps fucking talking

"What you wanna bet?"

Daryl frowns and looks at him like he's trying to keep it cool.

"I don't wanna bet nothing. I'm trying to concentrate"

"See? You lost your sense of direction, baby brother."

"It's just a body of water. Why's everything gotta be a competition with you?." I ask Merle and walk past Daryl. "Keep walking, Twinkle Toes. Guide us to the water before it gets dark."

Daryl growls uncomfortable by the nickname. He starts walking too while Merle laughs and follows.

"Hey! Take it easy, Princess. No need to get your panties all in a bunch."

* * *

It is dark by the time we finish eating fish.

We got to Yellow Jacket. Daryl proved What a dumb ape Merle is and they spent hours trying the craziest things to catch some fish while I found a small clearing near the creek and boiled the water we got.

We thought that we would be too exposed to build a camp right by the water, so being surrounded by plants is not that bad.

We sit around the campfire, which we lit inside a hole in the dirt made with the back of Daryl's crossbow to avoid others from seeing it. The bow needs to be cleaned now, but Daryl's taking care of it right now.

The night is extra dark today and we don't have nothing to put on the floor to sleep but at least we ate something.

They just got one fish and then it got dark so we had to share it.

"I didn't know you know how to fish" I tell my brothers.

"We don't." Merle says lifting his... Metal... Thing.. On his arm... Which I've been trying to not look at cause it makes me feel weird seeing my brother like that. "And its fucking annoying when you just have one hand"

"Stop whining like a little bitch" Daryl complains "grow a pair"

"It is obviously not the first time you try, is it?" I ask before Merle says something else.

"No. Darlena tried once." Merle says

Daryl shakes the dirt off his dirty red rag and keeps trying to clean the crossbow.

"Used bacon as bait." Merle smirks

"And..?"

"He failed"

I giggle and Merle looks like he remembers when that happened.

Daryl sighs lifting his head and looking at me. "try to get some sleep. We'll keep walking tomorrow"

I've been waiting for him to say something like that

I nod and lay on the dirt as comfortable as possible looking up at the stars to try to rest a little.

I look at them and tell my brothers before rolling to my side giving my back to them. "Don't kill each other while I'm out, alright?"

"Just rest a little" Daryl replies while I roll to my side giving my back to them and Merle chuckles. "I'll keep watch first" Daryl says behind me.

Then I hear Merle say. "night, baby girl"

I sigh hiding a sad look on my eyes.

Night, Merle. I love you.

If it was on me I would get the fuck up as fast as I can and run to him and tell him how much I missed him.

But I just can't. Not after last night at woodbury...

"I'm not your baby girl" I mumble feeling like shit and silence takes control of the place.

I close my eyes. I'm sorry...


	33. Home

I snap my eyes open when I hear the sound of what I think is a baby crying and a woman yelling.

Lori?

No. Lori's dead.

Whats going on?

I sit blinking to get my eyes used to the light and look around.

Merle, who was kneeling covering the campfire hole, stands up and looks around like me.

Daryl stands up frowning. The sound woke him up too.

I get on my feet.

The sound seems to come from somewhere nearby.

"You hear that?" Daryl asks trying to make sure he's not dreaming.

I'm glad I'm not the only one hearing this!

We listen trying to figure out where it comes from and Merle chuckles

"Yeah. Wild animals getting wild"

"No" Daryl rolls his eyes "it's a baby"

I look at him "Ass-kicker?"

Carol? Maybe Maggie or Beth?

Could they be back on the road due to the Governor attacking the prison?

"Can't tell..." Daryl replies

I look at my youngest brother feeling concerned. Should we help them?

I look back to my bag thinking fast and make a decision.

To leave them for the walkers risking our people, if its them. Or, go for it, take the shot, risk our lives but make sure it's no one we know.

Well...Whoever it is, I won't stand here waiting for them to die.

Merle watches me confused while I make sure my gun is in my holster.

I put my backpack on and walk to the noise.

"You coming, ladies?" I ask my brothers, who stare at me with a confused frown.

Daryl nods and takes his bag and his crossbow. He rushes to where I am while Merle starts walking behind us complaining.

"Oh come on. Why don't you just piss in my ear and tell me it's raining, too? That's the sound of a couple of coons making love, sweet love" he says trying to stop us and starts swaying his hips.

I turn to look at him while Daryl keeps following the cries "Merle, just shut up and walk."

* * *

The baby seems to be close so we end up running to it.

I want to get there as fast as I can. I don't want to risk anyone dead.

Merle follows with an annoyed look until we finally get to the place we're looking for.

Theres the bridge on the clearing we saw yesterday to start fishing in the yellow jacket. There are people screaming and there's definitely the sound of a baby crying. We can see people up there. Not our people though...

Theres the sound of walkers growling and we hear some yelling and gunshots.

Are those men speaking Spanish?

Ugh.. Not again...We don't speak much spanish...

We stop right there to watch the scene before reacting once more and hear Merle yelling and whistling

"Hey! Jump!" He laughs

I look at him fuming with anger.

What the fuck, Merle?

Daryl starts running again to help the people.

I take one more minute to stare at my oldest brother and shake my head with an angry look on my eyes

"What?" He stops smiling and tries to look innocent. "Hey, I ain't wasting my bullets on a couple of strangers that ain't never cooked me a meal or felicitated my piece." I frown even more while he keeps talking "That's my policy. You'd be wise to adopt it, Princess!"

"You suck" I growl at him

Merle widens his eyes while I turn to run behind Daryl.

* * *

There are at least twenty walkers surrounding what looks like a small hispanic family. Daryl has already started to kill them dumb fucks by the time I get there.

Badass brother goes to the rescue!

Two men are standing on an old platform with walkers surrounding them.

Their red car is almost in the middle of the road with some walkers piling around it with the woman and the baby inside.

One of them is crawling in from the back since the trunk is wide open and the rest bang on the windows trying to get the woman and the kid.

Some walkers are now closing on my brother since he's the only one killing them and the other two guys just look at him like assholes.

I run to the walkers and jump on one of them stabbing its head. I'm now realising Maggie never gave back my beretta... I want my gun!

"I'm trying to help y'all, cover me!" Daryl yells to no one specifically. He just needs backup.

The man keeps speaking and yelling in Spanish until my brother had enough of it and requests English.

"No te entiendo!" The man replies.

What? How the fuck are we gonna make this work?

"Shoot them!" I tell him exaggerating my movements to tell him how. I kick and stab another walker.

He finally reacts. He tells his son something.

Why do they always speak Spanish?! That language is the hardest thing ever!

He gets down to kill them too.

I haven't seen Merle as we kill the undead here. Is he... Gone or something?

We keep going for a few minutes. The weather is too hot for me and my luck gets even better when my knife gets somehow stuck in a fucker's head.

I pull as hard as I can and start getting nervous hearing how another one approaches me fast from behind.

I let go of my knife frustrated and lift my revolver cursing because it'll attract more walkers, but suddenly Merle tackles, grabs the undead tightly and starts beating it with his right arm, if we can call it that, until nothing is left of it.

He now takes his gun and helps us out killing walkers and soon Daryl kicks the last one off the bridge before I can even process the information of what just happened.

That car trunk kill was awesome, I gotta admit that Daryl got creative with it.

Merle pulls my knife out of the undead's head to then hand it back to me. "Your gun has no bullets" he tells me.

I take the knife awkwardly mumbling a weak and barely understandable 'thank you'.

I feel stupid. Merle nods as a response.

How did I not see that?

I hear the people yelling in Spanish once more.

"Speak English!" Daryl replies for what seems like a millionth time.

I approach them. We try to understand each other but give up after a few attempts.

* * *

We hear the lady screaming again.

The four of us look back to the car and notice Merle with half his body in.

"Oye!" The hispanic man yells. I think that means 'hey!' "Alejate de mi carro."

Ok, I did not get that...

Daryl and I walk closer. My youngest brother eyeing him carefully.

I look at him with a blank expression until Merle points his gun at the man.

"Slow down, beaner. That ain't no way to say thank you."

"Merle." I call walking slowly to him "Merle, put the gun down"

Daryl walks around with his jaw really, REALLY tight.

"Please, brother. Just put the gun down..." I try again without any luck.

"No tenemos nada para llevar" The man tells him

The son asks "Se quiere llevar el carro? El tanque esta vacio."

"Let 'em go." I hear Daryl say.

I prefer to stay out... For now...

Daryl keeps walking around the car until he's behind the oldest of our family.

"The least they can do is give us an enchilada or something, huh?" Merle says and goes back inside the car. He looks at the woman "Easy does it, señorita. Everything's gonna be fine"

The son tries to run to my brothers looking angry and concerned. I understand, I mean I would be feeling angry too, but he's not getting closer to them. I stop him "Hey! ." I mutter still holding my gun with one hand and telling them to stop moving with the other one "We wont hurt you."

He tells his son to stay back. "Que es lo que quieren?"

Daryl just keeps looking at them carefully. He shifts his eyes from them to me and Merle.

"I don't know what you're saying. I'm sorry" I say awkwardly and put my hands up for a second to help them understand I wont hurt them, then look back to Daryl while putting my hands back down.

"Que?"

Oh, I got that.

"We'll get our brother away from your family. Then you can go. As easy as that." I answer his question speaking slowly,

I hope he gets something that way.

The man hesitates on doing anything. He just looks back and forth between me and my brothers.

Daryl points his crossbow to our brother's head. I widen my eyes a bit in surprise...

Merle wont like that...

"Get out of the car" He growls deeply

Merle freezes in his place and responds "I know you're not talking to me, brother"

"Now." We hear Daryl commanding firmly.

Merle backs up slowly. He closes the door and turns to face Daryl but stays quiet.

They really are about to kill each other.

I stare at them anxiously and start chewing on my lip.

Daryl tells the hispanic family "Get your car and get the hell out of here". They look at me confused.

Daryl yells louder "Go! Get in your car!"

The people runs to the car and drives away as fast as they can.

My brothers keep staring at each other until Daryl lifts his bow and walks past me picking every bolt on his way.

I look back to Merle and then follow Daryl without even a word about it.

* * *

"The shit you doing, pointing that thing at me?" Merle almost yells at Daryl, who's having the lead once more, he has never stopped walking since we left the bridge.

He seems furious because of Merle's stupid decision of trying to get something from that family.

I just need a break from all thats happened in the last week. I mean, it's been mentally and emotionally exhausting...

He's not helping our youngest brother's mood right now neither.

"They were scared, man." Comes Daryl's simple but angry response as we keep walking

"They were rude is what they were! Rude and they owed us a token of gratitude."

I roll my eyes and stop. I turn towards Merle.

"They didn't owe us nothing." I say with an annoyed voice but still don't talk loud like I expect him to reply

"You helping people out of the goodness of your hearts? Even though you might die doing it?"

I hear that Daryl finally stopped.

"Any problem with that?" I hiss

"Is that something your Sheriff Rick taught you?"

"Why the fuck do you care?"

"There was a baby!" Daryl jumps in the argument angrily and comes closer.

"Oh, otherwise you would have just left them to the biters, then?" Merle asks in a bad mood telling us indirectly that it is our fault that he was left behind back in Atlanta.

"Man, I went back for you." Daryl argues while I look at how he fights Merle standing barely inches away from me. "You weren't there. I didn't cut off your hand, neither. You did that. Way before they locked you up on that roof. You asked for it."

He knew about Merle's hand? Why didn't he tell me?

"You know what's funny to me?" Merle replies walking around "You and Sheriff Rick are like this now. Right? I bet you a penny and a fiddle of gold that you never told him that we were planning on robbing that camp blind."

I widen my eyes and look at Daryl.

Planning what?!

What. The. Fuck.

"You what?" I ask my youngest brother. Daryl just stares at him with an unreadable expression on his face. This tells me it is true.

"Oh, he didn't tell you?" Merle snorts making us both angrier. I stare at Daryl with a really angry frown. I thought we had an agreement.

They never listen to me!

"We were gonna put officer Walsh down. Take their shit and leave with all the supplies. I just wasn't there by his side" Merle grins

I stare at him in complete shock. I cant believe what Merle is saying!

These two assholes...

"You were gonna fuck everything up without even letting me know you were planning on doing so?! Thank you very much! I love this shit!"

"It didn't happen" Daryl growls softly.

"Yeah, it didn't 'cause he wasn't there to help you." I tell him "what the fuck, man?"

Daryl frowns to me.

"Exactly, He wasn't there! I chose not to do it didn't I? I saw what kind of people they were! And where was he? Gone! Just like when we were kids!" He looks back up to Merle and roars closer to him "Who left who then?"

"What, I'm the bad brother cause I left you when you were a kid?! Huh? Is that why I lost my hand?" Merle yells

"You lost your hand 'cause you're a simpleminded piece of shit!" Daryl yells back. He tries to walk away, but Merle is already on him.

Merle beats Daryl and Daryl beats him back.

Shit, not again!

I beg for them to stop but he looks like Merle wants to beat Daryl down to nothing.

He grabs him hard by the back of his shirt and both shove and pull at the same time causing him to lose his balance.

Daryl falls to the ground tearing his shirt open almost completely.

Merle lifts his fist once more to keep beating him but stops his hand right when I run and place myself behind Daryl and in between them.

I place one hand on Daryl's back to keep Merle away

Merle stops, looking at me in shock while I breathe in and out looking into his eyes and then back to my other brother's back with all the scars that apparently shock Merle but I'm used to watch every day.

Daryl moves away from me and tries desperately to cover his back so bad that he ends up putting his backpack on to cover the scars.

"I... I didn't know he was..." Merle tries to mutter but words never come out.

"Yeah, he did. He did the same to you." Daryl answers and gets up awkwardly. I get up too "thats why you left that time."

Merle replies "I had to, man. I would have killed him otherwise. I didn't know..."

"Yeah." Daryl grunts softly "I get it"

I wonder what dad did to them to leave such scars...

"Daryl..."

Daryl looks down to me and starts walking away

I follow his lead quietly.

"Where you going?" Merle asks with a complete different tone than he had before. Daryl stops. We look back to our brother.

"Back where we belong." He replies.

"I can't go with you. I tried to kill that black bitch. Damn near killed the Chinese kid."

"He's Korean."

"Whatever." Merle says. I just wish there was another way to make him understand... "Doesn't matter, man. I just can't go with you."

Daryl shakes his head. He lifts his hand holding a bolt. He holds the bolt towards Merle and says with a broken voice. "You know, I may be the one walking away but you're the one that's leaving... again."

Then he puts his arm around me and mutters a soft 'come on'

* * *

We're not even close to the prison yet and Daryl knows theres trouble. He stops walking and looks around with a concentrated expression on his face.

I ask whats wrong and just hear a gunshot.

And another one...

And another one...

More than expected. I look forward with a worried expression on my face since they come from the prison.

"Well looks like I was right." I hear Merle say behind us. "The governor came to shoot your girlfriend Rick's ass"

I turn to give him a 'shut up' look and just then Daryl seems to change to guard dog mode.

He makes sure his crossbow is loaded and walks faster in a straight line to where the prison is.

I look back.

"After you" I tell Merle with a daring look and wait for him to start following Daryl. He rolls his eyes and hands me his gun before walking. We follow Daryl.

* * *

I see Ricks surprised face as he realises the arrow, the walker falling and the loud shot coming from Merle's gun in my hands.

Then Merle running like an animal towards the walkers and getting them away from him. I never thought I would see Rick and Merle killing walkers together.

I shoot more to prevent them from coming closer. Daryl does the same.

When Im almost done I take a look back to the yard. Full of walkers...

The governor and his men are driving away. Bullshit!

Fucking coward piece of shit! I have bigger balls than him and I don't even have a pair of those hanging in between my legs.

At least our people is safe behind the fence.

Rick and Merle get on their feet and Daryl stops shooting too. Our leader looks around to make sure everyone's fine and see the damage to the prison

When he's done he nods to my youngest brother. Daryl nods back.

We're back in the game!

Merle laughs a little walking closer to me and pats my back slightly "nice job right there." He whispers.

"Thanks" I whisper back as we follow Rick and Daryl.

"I told you the governor was coming to hunt your butts down"

"The governor" I chuckle "Pussy son of a bitch."

We look inside the fence.

The walkers claimed back their territory. Being out here is not a good idea...

Rick shakes his head angrily.

* * *

 ** _Hello, lovely readers_**

 ** _I'm back after a mental breakdown and lack of inspiration. I hope y'all are doing well._**

 ** _Today's chapter was a challenge because... Well, I had to write spanish._**

 ** _I do know some Spanish, but writing it.. Wow... Applause to those who write in that language._**

 ** _I was debating on just putting the dialogues in english, but I thought it would take the effect away because in the original tv episode, the scene with the hispanic family is in spanish and without translations. Just like I wrote it here. I had to try..._**

 ** _For those who can't read Spanish (I know its a hard language... I still cant process it right) translation is down there_**

 ** _I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. (Including the spanish dialogues. Those were hardcore.) Dont forget to review._**

* * *

 _ **ENGLISH-SPANISH HERE!**_

 _ **I don't understand you!- no te entiendo**_

 _ **Get away from my car! - alejate de mi carro**_

 _ **We don't have anything.-no tenemos nada para llevar**_  
 _ **They wanna take the car? The tank is empty.- se quiere llevar el carro? El tanque esta vacio**_

 _ **what do you want?- que es lo que quieren?**_

 _ **What?- que?**_


	34. Locked

Merle is locked in the cell block hall because Rick didn't let him in with us so he stays out in a small cell.

I wish he could come in with us...

It was a complete chaos, to be honest no one wants him here. Not even he wants himself here but he's doing it for us.

At least that is something my brother would do and I'm glad didn't change.

We're all tired of fighting and debating on what we're gonna do with him all day. I walk through the dark prison with no shoes or socks at all.

The concrete gives my bare feet a cold sensation.

A quick blinding light comes through the window. Then I hear the roaring of a thunder.

Its gonna rain.

"Hey" I say and walk a little inside Daryl's cell.

Apparently he got rid of the ripped shirt and has now a black wife beater on.

He's sitting on his bunkbed. He pulls one of his boots off his foot to then let it fall with the other one next to his bunkbed.

We hear another thunder and look up. This time, it comes with the sound of the big angry rain drops hitting the concrete roof of the cell block.

I gotta admit I'm happy to be back here.

My brother looks at me and replies the same way. A tired, yet low "Hey" comes out of his throat. "You ok?"

I nod awkwardly. "Yeah... Yeah, I'm good."

Daryl nods and then looks down resting his elbows on his legs. Looking as awkward as me, I guess.

"Listen, I know you hate when I use your stuff.."

He stares back up to me but keeps quiet. His eyes keep asking me only one question. 'What did you do now?'

"Can I use one of your shirts or something?" I ask awkwardly and look down to myself. I know he has more clothes than I do "This is the only one I have left and I really don't feel good with stinky walker blood all over me..."

He looks at me from head to toe thinking about it without any expression at all and after some seconds he nods a few times before standing up.

He takes the flashlight in the corner thats giving us all the possible light it can and turns around.

He pulls his almost empty bag from the upper bed down to the lower one and opens it.

He puts his hand in and pulls out all thats in the bag.

An empty plastic bottle, a broken bolt, pair of jeans, one of those flannels he uses that I'm pretty sure will lose its sleeves soon and a light grey hoodie we found when we were freezing our butts back in January.

He shrugs meaning thats all he has... Plus his leather vest and jacket.

Everything looks too big for me anyway, but its better than blood and sweat.

I chuckle. "Running outta stuff too..."

He nods.

I take the hoodie "thanks"

"Hey," he calls before I leave

"Yeah."

"Maybe we can go on a quick run tomorrow. Depending on how thing are with the Governor. Get whatever you need"

I nod, thank him again and walk away.

* * *

I walk down the stairs with one bottle full of water in my hand. I know Merle, and I know he needs to be drinking something.

Ok, not really. I just want an excuse to be with him...

As I approach the entrance gate I see Rick there with his baby and only walk past him.

He frowns and turns around to call me. I hear my name and stop.

Fuck, I can almost hear him telling me that I'm staying in here no matter what...

I turn to look at him

"Where are you going?" He asks me. He doesn't sound mad or challenging, just curious and careful.

Huh...

"Out"

"Of the cell block?"

"No, out to the hall. Gonna give my brother some water." I reply

"His cell is locked"

" I don't need to open the cell to give him a bottle."

Rick nods.

"Ok. Just be careful" He says in a tone I think sounded somehow sweet and protective while he rocks his baby gently.

He looks so cute when he's with his baby...

Wait, what the fuck am I thinking?

I shake the thought away.

"I'll be ok, He wont hurt me" I smile and walk away once more.

"Hey" I hear him and turn around. He throws me his set of keys and says "Close the gate when you're back"

I catch "Will do"

* * *

As soon as I step out Merle is already looking at me with his arms hanging out of the cell.

I say hi.

"Please Tell me you were not flirting with the sheriff" is all he says.

"Stop it." I would never flirt with Rick.

I hand him the water.

"Uh-huh" he takes it and drinks from the bottle without stopping his suspicious look.

I roll my eyes.

No. Just... No.

I mutter "We could make this work, you know?"

My brother stops drinking water and looks at me with a confused frown.

Oh come on, Merle! I'm not talking about Rick!

I sigh "I mean you being part of the group, dumbass!"

Merle drinks more water and looks at me. He shakes his head.

"Officer friendly is not agreeing with you and I'm not exactly comfortable in here, you know, sweetheart?"

I shake my head "I know... But still. I think you could like walking around freely if you did something for them. Just one little thing."

"I will. Eventually"

"You will help, or just walk around freely being a total dick?"

"I guess a little bit of both."

"Oh come on, brother."

"Fine! I'll think about it!"

"I hope so. Anyways, Daryl's gonna bring you something to eat in a while in case you're hungry. He'll be in watch tonight so just let him know if you need anything. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"What other choice do I have?"

"Great. you're awesome" I pat Merle's back and turn to walk back to the cell block. He says

"Look at my baby girl." I stop right there in my place. "Almost a full grown woman. Curves and titties and shit." I roll my eyes and start walking again

"You know, I never stopped looking for you and Daryl." I stop once more. I hesitate a little and turn to look at him.

I don't want to talk about it. I know he's lying.

I know he just wants me on his arms saying how much I missed him and how much it broke me to see him on the governor's side.

It would've worked if I hadn't gone through all winter alone with Daryl.

I think of what to say carefully and after a moment of just staring at each other I decide what to tell him.

"Night, Merle.." I walk back inside the cell block making sure to lock the gate just like Rick told me.

* * *

Today Merle seems to be more relaxed. Well, I'm not, and to be honest Rick and the group are certainly not relaxed at all.

I know sooner or later shit's gonna go down hard. I really think it'll be more sooner than later, but I can't do nothing about it.

We all know whats coming. The governor is not done yet.

Rick called us all to a group meeting outside the cells to discuss whats gonna happen with Merle and the whole town of Woodbury, which I think is dumb since we all know whats gonna happen. The governor will attack us and Rick wants us to be prepared.

Hey, better safe than sorry, right?

After talking for long boring hours, discussing what they —and by 'they' I mean Merle— did to Glenn and Maggie, and how the governor tried to make us talk, it is pretty much clear what we need to do... Or so they say...

We need to leave. Now.

Everyone has agreed with the plan except for my brothers, who decide to keep quiet, and Rick because... He just wants to stay, I guess.

Some of us are sitting on the stairs like Hershel, others are leaning on the walls, like me near the entrance gate leading to the hall, and others just stand by their cells.

Daryl watches from upstairs, his arms on the railing, leaning there just watching like an eagle. Every movement, every word.

"We're not leaving" Rick says with his dry 'ricktator' voice like its not at option, but a fact. Merle scoffs behind me.

Hershel shakes his head and says "We can't stay here"

"What if there's another sniper? A wood pallet won't stop any of those rounds." Maggie asks concerned since apparently they just killed Axel with a clean headshot.

I think Axel was cool. I just didn't get to know him well.

"We can't even go outside" Beth speaks supporting her sister.

Carol nods "Well...Not in the daylight."

"Whatever we're gonna do, we don't have enough supplies or ammo anyway." I say "If we stay, they surround us and kill us. If we leave, we're exposed, they find us and kill us. Snipers, walkers, in here, or outside, we need to check the situation first, maybe go on a quick suicide run to get what we need. Right now we're in no position of discussing nothing."

Glenn walks forward with a frown and looks at me "On a quick suicide run? You mean separating the group? And risk another bunch of people getting shot and overwhelmed? We lost too many people already."

"Fine, then we stay here, like I said without ammo we're dead. Going out is our best chance"

"No, better to live like rats" I hear Merle joining

Daryl rolls his eyes and looks at him with an angry frown. I only look back at him with a disappointed look in my eyes while he keeps talking.

"We should've slid out of here last night and lived to fight another day. But we lost that window, didn't we? I'm sure he's got scouts on every road out of this place by now."

Well, Merle's got a point there. A creepy one.

He may be right on that one.

If anyone knows how the governor thinks, it is Merle, and the group knows it.

I chew on my lip anxiously.

"Yeah, we ain't scared of that prick" I hear Daryl say and turn my head to look at him. He walks up and down top row of cells.

Merle wont stop looking at the group. "Well, Y'all should be, baby brother. That truck through the fence thing? That's just him ringing the door bell. We might have some thick walls to hide behind, but he's got the guns and the numbers. And if he takes the high ground around this place, shoot. He could just starve us out if he wanted to."

"Let's put him in the other cell block" Maggie says angrily

I stop her eyeing her the same way

"Don't you dare getting near my brother" I growl

"Mac!" I hear Daryl and look up. He shakes his head slowly in disapproval.

"We gotta admit he's right!" I argue. "That truck through the fence?"

"He might have the people and guns, but I don't think that he's the kinda person who just wants to storm in here and kill us all." Daryl tells me

"Well, the starving thing sounds like a pretty good and efficient idea. And I do believe the fucker is sadistically sick enough for being capable of doing that. We can't risk staying here"

Merle nods and looks to Rick raising an eyebrow. "She's got a point, sheriff. You better listen to her."

Rick nods.

"I say we should leave. Now Axel's dead. We can't just sit here" Hershel says but once again Rick just shakes his head. He takes a minute and turns to leave.

Hershel calls him. Rick ignores him

We look at the old man surprised when he gets up from the stairs and yells to our leader in an angry tone

"Get back here!"

Rick freezes. We look quietly watching the scene.

Hershel talks and walks close to him "You're slipping, Rick. We've all seen it. We understand why, but now is not the time. You once said this isn't a democracy, now you have to own up to that! I put my family's life in your hands, Daryl put his and his sister's, your kids, Glenn, Carol, everyone is waiting for you to react. So get your head clear and do something."

Hershel and Rick just look at each other for a long while, then the sheriff lets out a sigh and rubs his forehead.

"Alright..." he says and looks up to face the rest of us with a nod.


	35. Matthew 5:29 and 30

**Hello, Darlings!**

 **Tonight's chapter is so short that I decided to bring y'all a bonus chapter! I know, both are super short, but thats why its double chapter night!**

 **Hope y'all enjoy and review like always.**

 **I love reviews! Amaze me with your reviews!**

 **Thanks for reading everyone!**

* * *

I walk outside to where Rick is.. He told Carol to watch Merle from trying anything stupid. I really doubt Merle would care who the hell's watching him.

I stop when I hear voices. Rick's not alone.

"I won't get mad." I hear Rick say. I approach them slower to him them finish the conversation but let him know I'm here at the same time.

"You should stop." I hear the other person say. Sounds like Carl.

"Stop what?" Rick asks

"Being the leader." He says simply. I stop before they can see me. "Let Hershel and Daryl handle things. You deserve a rest."

I clear my throat and they both look at me. Carl looks down awkwardly and moves back inside while Rick looks back to the field.

I walk next to him and look around too for a few minutes without saying a word. Then I make sure no one is around and there's no threat out there and ask without looking at him

"Are you gonna do it?"

He looks in my direction once more "what?"

"Quitting. Letting Hershel and Daryl in charge of the group."

Theres silence again. He sighs after a short pause. "Sometimes I wish I could do that"

"No one is forcing you to do anything" I say finally looking at him.

"I know. But still." He nods. He walks towards the entrance door.

* * *

"Field's filled with walkers." Rick says. We stand next to the group "I didn't see any snipers out there"

"We'll get up in the guard tower," Daryl says looking at me. "take out half them walkers, give these guys a chance to fix the fence."

Wow, seems like it'll be a busy day for me.

I don't argue. Better than staying in here.

"Or use some of the cars to put the bus in place." The black lady, who's name seems to be Michonne, suggests and Hershel shakes his head.

"We can't access the field without burning through our bullets."

"So we're trapped in here." Glenn joins angrily. He's changed a lot too. "There's barely any food or ammo."

"Come on. Been here before. We'll be all right." I tell him trying to calm him down

"That's when it was just us." What does that mean? "Before there was a snake in the nest."

Daryl and I turn to look at him angrily. Everyone notices it.

Oh, fuck no!

"Man, we gonna go through this again?" Daryl growls "Look, Merle's staying here. He's with us now. Get used to it. All y'all."

My brother walks upstairs fuming with anger. He prefers to avoid them, otherwise he'll try to kill them.

I give the others a death glare and shake my head.

"This is not gonna work, Rick. You need to do something about it!" I hear Glenn say.

I growl while Rick says "Glenn, listen to me for a second..."

"No, Rick. If you're not gonna do anything I will."

"And what's that you gonna do, Glenn.?" I ask. They look at me with wide eyes "Quite a pair you growing"

"Just relax, ok?" Rick tells me "We can't jump on each other's throats now, we gotta stick together."

"That's exactly what we're trying to do." I argue

"Just try to see it from his perspective. Maybe we should.."

"Hey, don't.." Glenn interrupts Rick and gets closer "All I'm saying is that Maggie's right, okay?! We should isolate him for a bit, see how that goes and then.."

"fuck you!" I tell the Asian "Merle's not dangerous! I can sleep in the damn cell with him if you want him under surveillance, so don't be a bunch of pussies and get your panties in a bunch over..."

"Hey" Rick warns me

"Seriously, Rick. I don't think Merle living here's really gonna work." Glenn continues

"I can't kick him out" he responds

"I wouldn't ask you to live with Shane after he tried to kill you, Rick!"

"Look, Glenn. I get what you're aiming at. I'm on your side. Really, but you gotta understand. Even after all he's done to you, other people and even Daryl, Merle's still their brother."

"Who cares?"

"I care." I say "He may be a complete asshole but you can't just kick him out and expect me to stay with you at the same time. Maybe you didn't live with Shane after all he did, but we did live with him after he tried to kill us. In case y'all don't remember, those were the injuries that made Lori's decision of abandoning us in the middle of nowhere"

Both men only look at me and how mad and tired this makes me.

Hershel jumps in the conversation after listening to all that and thinking about it. We look at him

"She's right. Merle may be erratic, but don't underestimate his loyalty to his family. And he's got military experience. We could use that too. We can't exactly lose more people these days, Rick."

"What if we solved both problems at once? Deliver Merle to the Governor. Bargaining chip. Give him his traitor, maybe declare a truce" Glenn suggests making me frown again

"Might as well kill my brother! You really believe that shit's gonna work?"

"Why not?"

I fold my arms.

Is he seriously asking that?

Rick looks up and sighs.

* * *

I walk to my brother's cell. He smiles when he sees me.

"Still wearing that hoodie"

I smirk and stop in front of him "Its Daryl's. I ran out of supplies."

He chuckles. "No wonder why its too big for you"

"I'm only five inches smaller than him, last time I checked. Plus, I have a bloody shirt and a ripped pair of jeans with guts all over it. I ain't wearing that shit ever again."

He smirks and tells me to sit somewhere.

I approach him and give him some tape so he can fix his... Bayonet...Thing... I still don't know how to call it.

He starts taping it.

"Daryl and the Asian guy are not in good terms right now, are they"

I sigh "they want you out. Not gonna happen"

"Why?"

"No you no us. They gotta keep you" I tell him standing in front of him.

He nods. "You're on their side, working for them so you can keep me like a pet."

"Nope." I say walking forward. I sit next to him on the bed "I'm on their side so no one gets hurt"

He stops for a moment to look at me. He looks a little pissed, but still calm. He snorts "As if they cared when you got hurt." I only look at him wondering how he knows about that. "They didn't seem to need you as much back in winter, did they?"

"Daryl told you about this?"

"Not like you can't hide a bite mark for ever. Had to ask"

Yeah... Should've guessed it "You made him tell you"

"Daryl didn't talk. It was the blondie that told me about it." my brother mutters getting back to work.

"Beth? What did she tell you?" I frown slightly

"everything she knows."

I nod.

"She's a good pretty little girl, you know?"

Woah! "Don't even look at her."

"Who do you think I am?" Merle frowns without bothering to lift his head. "I'm not into kids"

"They're not bad people they're just scared."

Merle raises an eyebrow and looks at me for a second. He asks "And you're not?"

I think for a moment. I wont respond to that

"With or without me ain't much difference, you know the governor's coming. We shouldn't be here" Merle chuckles. "But, you would kiss ass if they told you to. Your sheriff says jump, you ask how high"

He looks down. I'm kinda worried about him. The look he has on his eyes tell me he's not feeling so good.

I look at him carefully.

He stops working on his arm. I'm so glad he's not being an asshole right now.

"You're my big brother, dumbass. I would do anything for you. But don't ask me to do something that'll hurt the people I care for."

Merle sighs and nods. He asks if I'm sure we care for them.

"yes"

He shakes his head slightly. "I love you, princess. But Officer Friendly ain't my type."

I scoff. There's nothing more to say...

* * *

I watch Merle finish with his arm and look at me.

I see Hershel coming closer and my brother looking back down to where he is.

Merle smiles and greets "You're the farmer, Hershel."

"And you're the black sheep, Merle." The old man replies. I only look at them

"How'd you lose it?" My brother asks calmly looking at his nonexistent leg.

"I was bit."

"Bit? You hack it off yourself?" He asks letting Hershel in and sit somewhere near us while replying.

"No. Rick did."

"Hm" Merle snorts "Awful kindly of him."

"Saved my life. Gave me more time with my family." Hershel tells him and pauses. He looks at me and then keeps talking "Gave you more time with yours. Can't put a price on that."

Merle looks at me and mutters back to the man in front of us "Can't put a price on anything anymore."

Silence. Fucking uncomfortable silence.

Hershel takes a small book out of his pocket. He shows it and if it wasn't for the golden title on it I wouldn't know what it is.

It's a bible

"I found this in one of the cells." He tells my brother. We look at him."Lost more than the Good Book there for a while. Lost my way."

I don't know where he's going with this. He should know that we've never been religious.

He quotes

"'And if your right hand offends you, cut it off, cast it from you.

For it is profitable that one of your members should perish...'"

I relate that to Merle's right hand. I keep looking at him and listening quietly but suddenly my brother replies

"'And not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.' Matthew 5:29 and 30."

I look at him with wide eyes. Merle knows the content in the bible?! I mean, I've read tons of books, but never been interested by the bible. And Merle knows its content?

My mind just exploded!

I keep listening.

"Woodbury had a damn fine library. You'd love it." He tells me knowing how much I love reading. I smirk. "One of the only things I miss about it."

Then his look changes to a sad one and then a darker evil glare. He warns Hershel "When the Governor returns, he's gonna kill me first. He'll take Michonne" he points to me with his eyes fixed on the farmer "Then he's gonna kill my baby girl just to have fun and after making him watch, he'll kill my brother." He says pointing up to the cells. I freeze.

"Then your girls. Glenn, Carl, the baby, whoever else is left. He'll save Rick for last so he can watch his family and friends die ugly. That's who you're dealing with."

I look at Hershel. He just nods and stands up. He only replies "Only God knows" and walks away seeming disturbed by it.

Merle looks down again.

I'm worried about him...


	36. Odd man out

We cant go out to the towers to keep watch so it is harder to do so.

We can't sleep waiting for Philip to arrive.

The day after I talked to my brother we needed baby supplies but Rick didn't want to risk us out there. Because of that Rick let Merle out of the tiny cell and sent him look for some.

Daryl sent me with him, to give Rick some sort of break, and to control Merle a bit.

When I was out there with him I realised I missed him more than I thought.

Things just were easy for me... Except for the racist, annoying shit he gave me from time to time, but other than that I felt Merle's company makes things fun.

Anyway, we got the diapers for the Ass Kicker. I got something different to wear too so I gave Daryl his hoodie back.

That was four days ago...

The group seems to be getting used to my brother's presence. Even though they still don't want him here and they just don't go close to him, Merle is free to walk around.

Four days and there's no sign of the governor. The more we wait, the stronger he is.

We don't know what he's been planning and the ignorance is eating our insides in an almost painful way.

So we just wait...

All days have been a boring lockdown since Woodbury, and this one is not an exception. Things've been quiet and stressful just waiting to die.

I don't care how I die anymore, I just want something to happen so either we or Woodbury die and we end this shitty lifestyle full of fear and boredom.

and so we wait...

* * *

I hear something.

I look up from doing absolutely nothing but sitting on the floor next to a random cell.

No one goes out to the yard unarmed. No one puts a foot in the field.

It is too dangerous. Every day it has more and more walkers.

Just like Merle said, seems like he's starving us here, the only insignificant detail is he's not starving us physically.

We know he's coming and most of us are just waiting for the bombs to start flying.

We know he's gonna kill us if we don't kill him first.

I stand up and walk to the hall. Michonne sees me and stands up too. She follows me.

Glenn, Carol and Beth are there looking at the door absently.

Beth holds Judith carefully but in a protective way. Carol rubs her left arm with the palm of her right hand nervously.

Something happened...

I try to figure out what until it opens and Rick walks in with Andrea following him.

Both my brothers behind her.

Glenn tells Beth to get the baby inside. She nods and walks back in.

Hershel and Maggie come out from behind me and everyone falls quiet.

Andrea looks around.

Carol steps forward and they meet on a hug.

On everyone's faces I can see confusion, melancholy, for others she's not welcome here. They seem angry.

Daryl sits on one of the tables. Merle stays by the door. Both of them keep their weapons low but ready.

I don't know what to think. We weren't exactly friends last time I saw her, but that was about half a year ago.

"After you saved me I thought you were dead" I hear Carol say.

Andrea's expression changes when she looks up and lets go of Carol. "Hershel," she whispers looking at the farmer's leg "my god..."

I eye her from head to toe.

Andrea looks at all of us with a confused look. Examining us one by one.

"I can't believe this. Where's Shane?"she asks.

wow, she really is outdated!

Rick shakes his head.

Andrea takes a moment and then asks "And Lori?"

"She had a girl." Hershel explains. No one says a word about Shane "Lori didn't survive"

"Neither did T-Dog." Carol says.

Everyone is looking at Andrea. She looks around at everyone of us in shock

"I'm so sorry." She says and then widens her eyes when her eyes meet.. "Carl."

Carl looks at her angrily and steps back a bit. Andrea looks at his father now.

"Rick, I..."

Rick does the same, except he never looks at her. He puts a hand on his hips and backs up like his son did.

"You all live here?" she asks but no one answers.

Really, I don't know what the fuck she's doing here after being the governor's bitch.

Glenn finally nods. "Here in this cell block."

Andrea looks at him and points at the door that leads back to our cells. "There?"

Glenn nods.

Andrea walks towards us as if she wanted to go in but Rick steps forward stopping her. "I won't allow that."

"Why?" She argues "I'm not the enemy, Rick"

"Either way you sleep with him" I mumble making Daryl frown at me. He was the only one that heard what I said.

"We had that field and courtyard until your boyfriend tore down the fence with a truck and shot us up." Our leader speaks.

"Shoot you? He said you fired first."

I roll my eyes while everyone frowns or shake their heads. All of us give her disbelieving looks.

"Well, he's lying" Rick says simply.

I tell her "He killed an inmate who survived here."

"We liked him. He was one of us" Daryl joins the talk.

Andrea looks at us confused.

"I didn't know anything about that." She tells us "As soon as I found out it was all of you, I came. I didn't even know you were in Woodbury until after the shoot-out."

"You saw us that night" Daryl tells her angrily letting everyone know she's lying and she knew before.

"That was four days ago" Glenn says

"I told you, I came as soon as I could"

Andrea looks speechless and kinda angry for a moment, then she turns to look around and asks Michonne. "What have you told them?"

Michonne is leaning on the cell Rick had Merle in. She just shrugs and says honestly and calmly "nothing"

Nothing but the truth...

Andrea shakes her head. She speaks louder getting more and more angry every time someone talks against her boyfriend. "I don't get it. I left Atlanta with you people and now I'm the odd man out?"

"He almost killed Michonne and he would have killed us following your boyfriends's orders." Glenn speaks once more looking at Merle and making her even more upset and me a little surprised.

is he on Merle's side? Really?

She directly points at Merle. Why does everyone has to hate Merle? Andrea is equally or more of a traitor than Him

She raises her voice significantly and almost yells " With his finger on the trigger! Isn't he the one who kidnapped you? Who beat you?"

I feel anger rushing through me as I hear those words. That bitch is no one to talk shit about my brother.

Merle tilts his head but stays quiet.

I feel a stare and look in that direction. Daryl shakes his head slightly telling me to say nothing.

Andrea sighs rubbing her eyes tiredly and shakes her head again.

"Look, I cannot excuse or explain what Philip has done. But I am here trying to bring us together. We have to work this out."

Ha. Sure! Of course we'll be friends with the Governor.

Rick just snorts shaking his head too."There's nothing to work out. We're gonna kill him. I don't know how or when, but we will."

I smile when Andrea looks at us in shock "You're not getting it, are you?"

"I think the snipers and fence thing made it pretty clear" I growl

"We can settle this. There's room at Woodbury for all of you."

We hear how Merle chuckles holding back a loud laugh. "You know better than that" he tells her

"You have no right to talk for them." She tells my brother angrily looking up to him. "You're nothing but a traitor. You shouldn't even be holding a rifle near them"

He's not the one screwing with this sick asshole after seeing how he shot and almost killed us.

"He ain't mistaking any of us for a walker. Ain't shooting our heads" She understands perfectly the walker Daryl reference from the farm, but still, no one says a word about that, even though Rick's warning look tells Daryl to watch me closely.

My brothers exchange quick looks and then react

"Mac." I hear Merle. I look up at him "get up here, kiddo"

I roll my eyes and obey.

I am NOT a kid!

I walk back and forth in a bad mood until he makes me back up with a warning look.

He looks back to the group keeping me away from Andrea and behind him.

The blonde and I keep looking at each other with hatred.

"What makes you think this man wants to negotiate? Did he say that?" Herschel asks making us stop, just to try to have a calm discussion about this and Andrea looks away from me shaking her head.

"No"

"Then why did you come here?" Rick asks and she finally looks at him in the eye

"Because he's gearing up for war. The people are terrified. They see you as killers. They're training to attack."

"I'll tell you what, " Daryl speaks looking her directly in the eye with an angry voice. "Next time you see Philip, you tell him I'm gonna take his other eye out."

I chuckle.

Andrea looks at him looking desperate

"We've taken too much for too long. He wants a war? He's got one" Glenn says. Andrea just blinks after looking at all of us and walks closer to our leader "Rick. If you don't sit down and try to work this out, I don't know what's gonna happen. He has a whole town."

"Oh, we don't need to take out the whole town. We're gonna focus just on 'Philip'" I mumble once more. Merle rolls his eyes towards Daryl, who replies with an 'I know' look.

Rick looks at Andrea indifferently.

"Why don't you just try make things right?" She just protests looking at him "you've lost so much already. You're in charge of these people. You're responsible for their lives. You can't stand alone anymore."

"You wanna make this right? Get us inside" Rick says simply

"No" Andrea answers shaking her head "there are innocent people!"

There's innocent people here too.. A baby for example... Just saying...

"Then we got nothing to talk about" He interrupts her and walks past Daryl straight into the cell area.


	37. Suspicions

I walk out with a rifle in one of my hands.

I walk past Michonne on my way out and then see Andrea out there crying. I walk past her awkwardly startling her by accident

"Oh my god..." She breathes jumping away like a cat and wipes her tears

"Don't really know him, sorry" I joke uninterested

She takes a deep tired breath follows me to the watch point. She looks back to the empty nothingness of the walkers outside of the yard.

"You come out here to finish judging me and lynch me like Michonne just did?" She asks.

"I'm done doing that." I shake my head and look down to load my rifle. "Besides, you're the one that followed me from the middle of the yard."

She sighs and her voice changes drastically to a more understanding one

"Im sorry, I've had a hard time. I had no idea about this whole mess." She says relaxing a bit "I'm tired of fighting everyone over Philip."

I nod taking the weapon up with both hands. "Welcome to my world"

"I thought... he was so different before all this."

I nod again and look at her. She looks down to me while I speak. "We're not who we used to be before all this. Those people are dead no matter how hard we fight to get them back. I've tried "

Silence.

"Why do you keep fighting for the governor?" I ask taking the safety off the weapon.

"I don't know." She shrugs "I wish I knew."

"Do you love him?"

"I don't even know if I really love him"

More silence. I don't get her..

Why fighting everyone for someone you don't even relate to? I mean, I fight others over Merle because I love my brother no matter how angry he makes me, he'll always be my brother and I'll always be there to kill anyone who dislikes him. Same with Daryl. Merle's my family, my blood, but she don't even know what to think about this guy.

I work on my rifle silently.

We keep watching the walkers staggering here and there for minutes until Andrea states "You didn't lie, you're not out here to kill me" she makes me snort

"To kill you? What the fuck, woman?" I chuckle "I wouldn't kill you."

"For Now?" She asks and I smile.

"Not at all. Maybe we weren't in really good terms, but I get why you do some things." I explain to her "Plus, I've never really killed anyone before. You're cool."

"you're cool too. A little impulsive, but..." She smirks making me scoff and roll my eyes. Then she asks "Why did you come out here?"

"Not because of you." I say "Its my turn to keep watch. See the rifle here?"

I see something in the distance and look through the scope on my weapon. Andrea chuckles.

"Shane would be useful for the group right now" She says and her smile fades.

I think for a second "he became pretty unstable"

"What happened to him?"

"Rick killed him. The night we left the farm." I mutter after hesitating to reply, locating a walker stuck on a bush, so I look away from the scope and up to Andrea while her expression shows confusion and shock.

"Rick?"

"That whole Randall thing. Remember that?"

She nods

"It was all a lie. Shane tried to kill Rick."

"No, that can't be. Shane loved Rick." She says in shock

"Shane loved Lori. So much that at some point we got convinced the baby was his. He wanted Lori so bad he would've killed anyone to keep her for himself. Thats why Rick had to kill him. To protect his family and us, but that's over now, there's no need to go through it again. Rick loves his girl, he doesn't care if she's Shane's or his, he's her daddy and he loves her the same."

Andrea nods. "And Lori? How did she...?"

"Maggie and I..." I still remember the look on her eyes. Her screams. "I really don't wanna talk about it..."

"I'm sorry"

I nod.

"So... Who takes care of the baby?"

"Sometimes we take turns to feed her. Maybe you can see her before you go back to Woodbury. I think you'll like her."

"I will." She nods smirking "She's got a name?"

I smile "Ass-Kicker"

"Ass-Kicker?" Andrea frowns making me laugh slightly

"Thats right. Lil Ass-Kicker"

"Was it you or Daryl?" She asks after a pause looking a little better emotionally.

"Daryl."

"That man will never change" she jokes

I scoff... If only she knew...

* * *

Dead silence. I keep doing my work wondering after a few minutes why she's still next to me.

The two of us remain quiet for what could be the rest of the day.

She looks at me as if figuring something out. I ignore her stare down until she asks "Can I ask you something?"

I nod. "Sure"

"Is it true?"

I keep looking at the whole field "what?"

"Your immunity."

I look up to her.

I feel like I'm suddenly choking with my own tongue. What did she just say?

I clear my throat and look up to her. I think I misheard what she said "say again?"

"Milton says you may be immune to all this biter thing"

I shake my head with a weirded out expression "Who the hell's Milton?"

"He's a scientist in Woodbury." I frown confused while she talks "He took a blood sample for his research"

"Blood sample? From me?"

"Yes. While you were unconscious"

What is this, a bad joke? Is this guy on drugs?

Me? Immune?

Don't make me laugh! I'm not that lucky.

"why would he want a blood sample from me if his research is based on the walkers? I'm as normal as anyone else"

"He says he found a bite mark on you"

Suddenly I realise whats going on.

Ohhhh, he saw that bite mark

"oh, this thing?" I ask putting the rifle down to hold it with my left arm only and raise my right arm

Andrea widens her eyes. I see some sort of hope in them. "Yes!" She says and puts her hand closer asking for permission to examine me closer. I nod letting her take my arm

She touches and rubs my pinkish scar gently "So, this is true?"

I laugh shaking my head when she lets go of my arm and take the rifle with both hands again "nah, Its not a walker bite. Immunity would be cool though!"

Andrea looks disappointed and confused

"I would be dead if it was a walker's. Its a human bite."

"human?"

"I got into a fight with a woman and she bit the hell outta me when I tried to choke her." Andrea just keeps looking at me while I explain "Gotta admit it, it scared the crap out of us. We didn't know human bites don't do shit"

"Huh.. For a moment I thought... He thinks you're the cure to all this"

I shake my head. "You should leave all them crazy people, really. I'm the same human being I've always been, just as infected as you are." I say and look through the scope again to check on the towers. Again, nothing. "My blood has nothing special. Tell your friend he's wasting his time looking for something in it. And tell him if he touches me again he's dead"

Andrea thinks and keeps quiet.

* * *

The sun is setting.

Glenn gets the car in. We all wait around.

He stops and comes out. Andrea gets closer to him.

She's going back to her town.

She looks around as if trying to keep the memory forever. She looks at the car and then at out leader. "Can you spear it?"

He nods.

"Well..." She says "take care"

He nods again.

She gets on the car and closes the door. I guess this is goodbye...

Rick gives her something and tells her "be careful"

"You too..."

We only look at her as she starts the engine.

Merle opens the gate quickly and she starts driving. He closes the gate to avoid walkers from getting in.

We watch how she drives away.

I really hope she knows what shes doing.

We go back inside.

After the sun is down we gather around in the cell block. It's mostly quiet except for a few whispers here and there.

A fireplace made of candles gives us some light but the night is still darker than usual.

Carol sits next to Beth around the candles. Glenn and Maggie sit on the stairs. Michonne, next to the cell Rick allowed her to choose for the time being and Daryl talks to Hershel as both have their backs on other cells.

I see Merle leaning on the wall just below the windows. Seems like he wants to be left alone...

I look around. My two brothers look at each other. Merle's only keeps looking down while Daryl stares at him angrily as if trying to kill him by only looking at him.

I take a deep breath.

Carol calls me, so I walk to where she is and look down to her.

"Here" she whispers tapping the floor next to her. I look up tiredly and see Daryl looking at me now.

I think about it for a second. I smirk softly to Carol and sit next to her on the floor.

Most of my life's been full of abuse, loneliness and rejection from the moment I was born and my mother couldn't stand me, to the moment my old man almost killed me and the dead started walking. But most of the time I've had Merle and Daryl with me; specially Merle. A lot of people in town were afraid to mess with him.

But right now he doesn't look so threatning. He looks... Down, somehow.

I never expected that from him.

Rick comes out of his cell with his baby and walks down to us slowly.

He looks at Merle angrily as if wondering what he's doing inside this area.

My brother looks back with the same eyes the former sheriff is giving him.

Beth starts singing trying to lighten the mood a little. Not working... Not for me...

Rick looks to where Hershel and Daryl are and walks to them, he then looks back to Merle and says something. Daryl shakes his head and replies.

Merle turns to look at Beth while I keep watching Rick, Hershel and my brother talk.

They just whisper. I wonder whats all that about.

Rick says something that makes Hershel and Daryl look at Merle for a moment. Daryl nods again and talks.

I think it was 'yeah' or 'got it'

Then he turns back to Rick and the three of them keep talking for a bit. I watch them until they just rest their backs on the cells again and stay quiet.

I feel a hand on my shoulder. Carol whispers "are you ok?"

I smirk to her and nod. I turn to look at Beth like the rest. "Yeah. All good"

Merle's got something in mind... I wonder what it is...


	38. Politics

Its been a long day. We finally managed to do something about the hole in the wall downstairs while Rick, Michonne and Carl went on a run to get ammo.

They should be back soon, its about to be dark outside.

My arms and back hurt. So does my legs. I need to rest now.

I walk into the cell block all tired and thirsty. I'll go hang out with little Ass Kicker for a while. Jude is always fun to be around.

I'm making my way to the cell area but hear whispers inside Merle's cell. I frown.

What the...?

I stop walking.

Should I go check? Well, keeping an eye on Merle will never hurt. I don't want him fucking with someone... Literally... Not with Rick's attitude being like that.

I head towards his cell and see Daryl doing the same from up the stairs. He stops walking when he sees me.

We share a quick stare before reacting.

He just watches while I walk further and into Merle's cell.

I hear Carol's whispers coming from inside. She says indistinct babbling before get close enough to actually hear her say

"...Don't underestimate me."

I'm so confused right now.

Carol?!

I look back to Daryl. He frowns confused. I shrug.

"Excuse me?" My brother replies inside the cell.

"I've seen you making the rounds, trying to play nice." Merle listens to her and looks up at me as I stop behind Carol and lean on the doorway without her noticing. He looks behind me to Daryl who watches protectively as well. Then he looks back to her as we hear her talking "But if you screw this up, mess with Daryl, or hurt Mac more than you already have," Merle's eyes flicker briefly to our watchful figures once more, and she pauses as if waiting for his full attention. When his eyes meet hers again, she finishes her threat. "I will slit your throat while you sleep."

Merle nods. He breathes in as if going to say something but..

"Everything alright?" I ask making Carol stand up abruptly and look at me nervously

"Yeah..." Merle replies while she and I stare deeply into each other. I make sure to let her know I heard what she said and I'm not happy about it. "Just chatting with this lovely lady" He tries on a half huff of a laugh, but it dies quickly under our steady gaze.

I eye Carol with an unamused, dead serious, glare until she turns her head again to Merle.

"Enjoy your food." She says. And then she's gone.

I look back to Daryl, who disappears shortly after, giving us a warning look with his arms crossed.

Sometimes I do think he's our guard dog or something...

Merle stands up, crosses the cell and stand by me.

Whatever just happened, I'm taking him out of the cell block tonight until Rick comes back. Just to cool things down a bit.

After that, I'll sleep. I really need to.

I wonder where Daryl went.

* * *

 **The next Day...**

Yesterday Rick, Michonne and Carl brought lots of guns and ammunition. Apparently the rest of the group will clean them, load them, and put them somewhere accessible in case of an attack.

Daryl just disappeared throughout the entire day after I saw him leaving the cell block; I decided to leave him alone wherever he was and have some privacy. He deserves time for himself after all.

Today Glenn and Hershel will be in charge while we're gone and I really hope Merle don't cause any more problems than we already have.

I keep looking outside of the window. I see the trees passing by fast and Daryl driving the bike in front of us while Rick concentrates on following him to get to the place of the meeting with the governor.

"You good?" Rick asks without taking his eyes off the road. He drives with one hand while his other arm rests on the window frame. I turn my head in his direction and nod

"A little nervous maybe."

"Yeah... We'll see how this goes." He replies

"Merle didn't like the idea of us coming with you."

Rick scoffs. "I didn't like the idea of leaving him alone with the group, but still I got no choice. He's dangerous"

"Don't tell me the group is not dangerous too."

"He threatened to kill Glenn."

"Carol threatened to kill him yesterday"

"Carol?" Rick frowns glancing quickly at me

"Carol. The Carol that wouldn't hurt a fly, that Carol"

"She must've had her reasons"

"Rick, seriously? Carol threatening someone is not something serious? Merle's not a wild animal. He could really be useful if you gave him a chance"

"He's in the prison right now"

"And so far no one's died. Merle's not the monster you need to be afraid of, stop treating him like such"

"I wont be discussing this right now." Rick growls.

I roll my eyes and seat back normally waiting to get to where the governor told us.

* * *

"We're here" Rick sighs anxiously and changes his position now holding the wheel with both hands. I look out again and read the advertisement on one side of the entrance.

"Verlin's feed & seed..." I mutter and joke "where the real food is you"

Rick scoffs and soon the ride comes to a stop.

Both men step down the vehicles. Rick asks "you know how to drive?"

I shrug "not like there's any traffic around"

"Its not hard. Take the wheel, be ready to move the car when we tell you. Just be careful."

I nod and do as he says. Before going with Rick, Daryl tells me to wait for him to get in and then move the Hyundai to the entrance in case we need to run.

Once more I obey moving to the driver's seat and stay ready.

Oh, crap, I hope I don't fuck up..

* * *

I take a slow and deep breath watching all around me carefully.

I look to the back seat where my rifle sits and reach to put it on the passenger's seat. I shake my foot sightly to feel my knife and put a hand next to my leg to feel my beretta.

Ok. I feel a bit safer now.

I look around the car through the windows and mirrors again and wait for any sight of my brother or Rick.

I see Daryl comes walking through other side and lifts his arm telling me to get the car there.

Ok, here we go...

I turn on the car and slowly drive to where he is. I stop by his side with the window down a look up at him with curious look in my eyes

"Is he there?" I ask about the governor.

"He's already in there. Sat down with Rick."

"I don't see any cars."

"It don't feel right. Keep it running." I nod.

We both look around us. Still nothing.

I hear something... A car? It's getting closer...

Daryl sees something, taps the car and tells me "Heads up."

I take the rifle by my side and get out of the car.

A truck stops right on the road. Big ass truck compared to our Hyundai.

Three people step out of the vehicle.

First a man giving us a Macho-man look, then a nerdy guy with notes and glasses, finally Andrea.

We look at them, weapons up.

Andrea frowns.

"What the hell? Why's your boy already in there?" My brother asks her

"He's here?"

"Yup."

She sighs, rolls her eyes and walks inside angrily.

We wait.

* * *

The nerdy guy writes something on his notes. My brother walks up and down anxiously. The Macho guy leans on the truck with his rifle ready. I lean on the Hyundai with my rifle ready.

I look at my brother walking and start feeling just as anxious as he is. "Maybe we should go in?" I suggest

"The Governor thought it best if he and Rick spoke privately." The nerdy guy replies.

Andrea is there too!

Daryl stops walking and stares at them. "Who the hell are you?"

He stops writing. "Milton Mamet."

Milton... Is this the asshole that thought there was such thing as immunity? He's a total nerd!

"Great. He brought his butler." Daryl says

"I'm his advisor."

Oh, that explains why the governor is a total jerk...

"What kind of advice?" I ask curiously

"Planning. Biters..." He pauses "Uh, you know, I'm sorry, I don't feel like I need to explain myself to the henchmen."

"You better watch your mouth, sunshine." My brother scoffs making me smirk until the other guy, who's name we haven't bothered to ask, growls

."Look, if you and I are gonna be out here pointing guns at each other all day, do me a favor, shut your mouth."

Oh, shit.

Daryl approaches him angrily. The man stands properly.

"Daryl!" I call. My brother stops "We'll be at each other's throats soon enough. He's just provoking you"

Daryl stares at him carefully for a moment, then growls and walks back to where I am leaving the man smirking.

"Jackass..." Daryl mumbles

We wait again...

* * *

I sit on the car's hood.

Ugh! I'm so bored!

I rub my bite scar absently and hear my brother exhale heavily. I see how he walks in circles.

We stay like that for some time but then Milton talks and approaches us. We put our hands on our guns.

"Theres no reason to not use this time we have together. To explore the issues ourselves." He says

"Boss said to sit tight and shut up." The other guy says

"Don't you mean the Governor?" Daryl asks

"It's a good thing they're sitting down, especially after what happened. They're gonna work it out. Nobody wants another battle." The nerd explains

"I wouldn't exactly call it a battle." I say.

"I would call it a battle and I did. I recorded it." He tell us lifting his notes.

Daryl rolls his eyes. "For what?"

"Somebody's got to keep a record of what we've gone through. It'll be a part of our history."

"Bullshit." I mumble

"I've got dozens of interviews..."

Walkers growling interrupt him.

Daryl and the other man run to take care of it. I stay with Milton after Daryl growls he's got it.

I grunt and lay on my back on the hood of the car "let me know if you see a walker coming"

"Sure..." Milton replies.

I lay there until I stop hearing walkers and see the two guys talking in the distance.

Daryl found cigarettes. I'm sure that'll help his bad mood.

I see both men smoking together. Thats a good sign.

I jump down the hood and go sit on a bench nearby with Milton following me. He sits next to me.

Ummm...

I ignore him and keep watching Daryl.

"Hey." Milton starts. I stay quiet. "May I ask you a few questions? About your scar?"

"No" I reply dryly

"Ok." He mutters and gets his notes together "how long's it been?"

I roll my eyes and look at him "I said you may NOT ask me about it."

"Im truly sorry. Andrea told me about it. Human bite huh?"

I nod and stare at the other two once more

He clears his throat and stays quiet for a bit. Yeah, a bit...

"You and you brothers. You're close right?"

I sigh "you wont give up, will you?"

"I need to record as many information as I can."

I growl and move a little on the bench "yeah, I figured... No one's ever gonna read or hear about all your crap. Everyone's dead.."

"There may still be hope somewhere. A cure. If you let me have more information about your bite..."

"I'm sorry," I reply "I don't feel like explaining myself to the henchmen. It's not a walker bite, deal with it." He only looks at me

"Any other physical injuries during or after the outbreak?"

I growl and after a moment of silence, I talk "Fine, you win. collapsed lung. Daryl got me through it. Happy?"

"Well, you're just like them..." he mutters

I frown

"Your brothers."

"The fuck's that gotta do with your research?"

"Nothing. I just think its funny how you behave a lot like each other. Theres a real tight bond there. Specially Merle."

"What do you know about Merle anyway?" I mumble not really paying attention to him.

"You'd be surprised. I know your leader left him handcuffed to a roof back in Atlanta. I know he had to cut off his hand to escape a herd before they got to him."

I look down while he keeps talking.

"I know he was wandering the city in delirium and near death when the governor found him."

I.. Did not know that... "He never came back for us anyway."

"He did." Milton says finally catching my attention.

I look up to him

"He was dying when we found him. By the time he was healthy and trustworthy enough to go back for you, your group was gone. All he cared about when he was in Woodbury was to find you both."

What...?

* * *

Back at the prison we get out of the car and most of the group comes closer. I've never seen Rick so stressed.

"I want everyone inside." He commands and gives Merle a death glare that my brother ignores.

Inside, we gather all in the cellblock around Rick.

All nervous, anxious, we need to know what happened.

Merle stands right behind me and we watch how Rick takes the watch rifle and looks at us.

He thinks for a moment and says "So, I met this Governor. Sat with him for quite a while."

We keep looking at him

Merle asks "Just the two of you?"

"Yeah. We'll meet again in two days"

Sure.. And Andrea...

"Should have gone when we had the chance, bro." My brother says looking at Daryl. Daryl looks down for a moment

"He wants the prison." Rick tells us "He wants us gone. Dead. He wants us dead for what we did to Woodbury."

I tighten my jaw and see everyone's faces showing all this different reactions and emotions as Rick speaks

"We're going to war."


	39. Ward of despair

"I really don't get you. If there was something like that in here, then the prisoners took everything they could with them. There's no way they left their stuff around."

"There has to be something around here. You should be looking with me."

I chuckle "Yeah, you wish. You'd have better luck searching them walkers in the lower levels and other cell blocks." I tell Merle, who's destroying mattress by mattress in cell block D in the search for drugs. I am sitting in a corner of the cell, on the floor, watching him act like an animal.

Its the fourth cell we've been in and he hasn't found anything.

We hear the main gate open and look up. Merle looks behind him without standing up.

The steps come slowly up the stairs.

"Just looking for a little vacation." He says to the person on the stairs and turns to keep looking. He ain't gonna find nothing in it..."Best dope I ever had was in a mattress."

The person walks all the way up until I can see Rick getting close to us. He seems weirded out by my brother

Merle throws the mattress to the side and stands up to face the sheriff "Nothing. This place must have been no fun at all."

"We need your help." Rick tells him.

I stand up. I walk closer to them and notice Rick's reaction.

He didn't know I was here with Merle. Didn't he see me?

"Can I talk to you?... Privately?" He asks my oldest brother.

No need to ask twice.

I start out to leave them alone but Merle puts his hand in front of me. For a second I feel like panicking when Rick raises an eyebrow.

"I don't see why she can't listen"

Rick only looks at him quietly. Then nods "Do you even know why you do the things you do? The choices you make?"

Merle chuckles.

I move back a little to give them more space in the tiny cell. Hoping they dont kill eachother...Please...

Rick and I share a quick look before he sighs and says "If we give the Governor Michonne, Woodbury stands down."

Michonne? Wasn't she part of the group now?

Sacrificing someone?

I frown slightly

"I don't like it, but it's what needs to be done." Rick says "We need to make it quiet. We need your help with that."

"You ain't told any of the others, huh?" Merle asks seeming uncomfortable.

Our leader shakes his head "Just Hershel, Daryl and now you two."

Merle nods "The inner circle." He says sarcastically "I'm honored."

Would Rick really kill one of us to protect the rest? This isn't right.

I stay quiet. I dont like this.

How are we gonna do this?

"You know, back in Woodbury, when we'd go out on runs," Merle starts "he'd bash somebody's skull, slash somebody's throat, and he'd say, 'Never waste a bullet.' I always thought it was just an excuse."

Rick eyes him with his jaw tight, not looking sure of all this.

I'm just confused.

Merle smirks "You go on. Give him that girl. He ain't gonna kill her, you know. He's just gonna do things to her. Probably take out one of her eyes. Both of 'em, most likely. You'd let that happen for a shot?"

Rick hesitates.

Please shake your head...

We wait for an answer until he nods slightly.

Woah

"You're cold as ice, Officer Friendly. I'll help you." Merle chuckles

I look at him with wide eyes.

Help him?! What the fuck, Merle!? No!

Merle thinks for a bit and says "You're gonna need wire, not rope. Wire. Nothing she could chew through."

Rick takes a deep breath and nods again. He moves a bit as if he was gonna leave but Merle talks once more.

"You know something? You're right. I don't know why I do the things I do. Never did. Heres a living example of it." He looks back to me

Ugh...What?

"I'm a damn mystery to me."

Rick looks at me quickly before looking up to my brother again. He listens to Merle.

"But I know you, Rick. I thought a lot about you. You ain't got the spine for it."

Rick nods slightly one more time. He looks at me again and says "we need more help outside. We're almost done."

I nod and start walking past Merle before he puts his arm in front of me once more making me stop and see how they stare at each other as if daring the otheer to do something

"Watch my kid, sheriff" My brother growls before removing his arm. I walk hesitantly.

The hell...? Im not 5 anymore...

I stand next to Rick and wait for him to move to follow him outside with the others.

Rick nods and looks at Merle. He says dryly before walking down the stairs "We need to get her to the Governor by noon"

Merle nods. I look up to my brother with worried eyes

Fuck

I never expected this to happen... Even Merle looks disturbed by it...

I turn around and walk down to follow Rick.

* * *

Outside of cell block D the other group members are doing stuff in the yard. Maggie, Beth and Carl call the walkers to kill them through the fence, Glenn and Daryl help Michonne put something on the ground. It's something spiked that is barely noticeable once its on the floor.

They climb on the truck and drive back up here

I feel bad for Michonne. Are we really gonna take her to the Governor?

"What do you want me to help y'all with?" I ask Rick as we walk to open the gate for my them

"Nothing. We're done here."

"Then why did you..."

"I wanted to get you out of there. Maybe I need you for something else."

I frown to him. Out of there? Why?

Weird..

The sheriff opens the gate and waits for the truck to come in. "I got it" I say taking it so he can go talk to them.

He nods and runs to where Daryl is jumping down the bed of the Ram pickup. I push the gate closed before walkers can come in and run to Rick.

"She knows?" Daryl asks him whispering after looking at me

"She knows" he whispers back.

Daryl sighs in disapproval. He nods anyway

Glenn walks closer to us. "They try to drive up to the gate again, maybe some blown tires will stop them."

He seems proud of the plan.

"That's a good idea." Rick tells him

"It was Michonne's." Daryl mutters

Is there a moment in my life where I'm not gonna feel like shit about something?

Jesus fucking Christ...

"We don't have to win." I hear and look up to see Michonne walking closer to us too. "We just have to make their getting at us more trouble than it's worth. We can do this. Together."

I look at Rick.

Do we really have to kill her? I was starting to like her

When we start walking again I look to my right. Daryl is looking at me.

'What do you think?' His eyes ask me

'This is so wrong' mine reply

Daryl looks away.

* * *

"So, wire." Rick mutters.

We walk around the cell blocks looking for all the trash we can find that may be useful to tie Michonne and keep her from escaping once she knows what were up to.

"Thats what Merle said." I mutter walking by his side. "How are we gonna do it?"

"Still thinking on that..."

I nod and keep walking.

This is the third time we walk through here. We've seen lots of different kinds of wire, we just... Hesitate on taking them...

Finally Rick stops.

He kneels by a blue phone cord. He takes it and looks at it for a moment.

He starts wrapping it around his hand.

I look how he stops and looks behind him for a moment. He looks up to the bridge and closes his eyes tightly.

Is he ok?

I kneel next to him wondering whats wrong and frown slightly. "Rick?"

I'm about to touch him to see if he's fine when he opens his eyes, looks back once more and then whispers looking disturbed "she's not real. Shes not here"

I look up as well, but I cant see no one...

Is he fucking hallucinating?

"Who's not here?" I ask concerned

"Lori." He mumbles "She's dead. She can't be here"

Ok, now he's starting to scare me. Why is he hallucinating?

Is he high? Is he sick? Drunk? Concussion?

Is he dying or something?

"do you see her often?"

he nods.

"What is she doing?"

"Staring. Shes just looking at me... Every time..."

Well, I really don't believe in ghosts, so definitely Lori is not up there, plus I think I'd be able to see her too.

Is he seeing Lori cause he's super stressed? Maybe I should try to calm him down a bit. Who knows? "Maybe she's trying to tell you something"

"And what would that be?" He asks looking confused and tired "how do you even know?"

Shit, what do I tell him?

I think as fast as I can "The day she..." I pause. He knows what I mean. "She made me promise I would take care of you. "

"What?" He frowns

I sigh "I promised her I would not let you turn into something you're not."

Rick looks at me seeming even more puzzled.

"I know you would do anything to keep us safe. But," I reach for his hand wrapped in the wire. he looks down to it. "This is not us" I say

I free his hand carefully and stare at him. I nod slightly when he stares back.

Rick looks back to the bridge for a moment and then to me. He nods too.

We stand up.

Rick looks down to me "Tell Merle. I'll go with Hershel and Daryl"

"We're not doing it?"

He shakes his head "No"

I smirk and nod. I look up to the bridge when Rick starts walking away.

Michonne owes me one

* * *

I walk inside cell block D. I stop at the entrance and look around.

The ripping sound has stopped. Its dead silent in here.

I walk upstairs looking for Merle. Maybe he found something and is just stoned up there.

Half of the mattresses up here are in good shape. Merle stopped when I left...

He ain't here. Theres no sign of him in here but the broken mattresses

He went somewhere else

I walk down the stairs slowly while I think where he could be.

I head out to cell block C

I walk in our cell block and head for Merle's cell only to find it empty.

I frown and sigh in confusion.

Where could he be?

I think for a moment trying to figure out what Merle has in mind.

I hear Maggie and Beth talking. Maybe they know something.

"Maggie?" I approach both women that are fixing something to eat for Judith, who is on Beth's arms cooing. The three of them look at me.

"Have you seen Merle?"

Maggie thinks for a second "no. I haven't seen him, thank god. But Carol said he was here a while ago asking for a drink. Didn't pay much attention to him."

"Do you know where he could've gone? I need to tell him something"

Maggie shakes her head "Maybe he's with Rick."

"Daddy was with Rick a moment ago. Merle wasn't with them." Beth says cleaning Jude's chin that is now full of saliva " But I saw Michonne walking downstairs. Maybe she knows where he is"

Michonne?

"Oh fuck." I widen my eyes as realisation hits me.

I run to the gate leading downstairs leaving Beth and Maggie with confused looks on their faces. I'm starting to feel nervous.

* * *

I look in the cafeteria, the cells, the generator room, in every single corridor hoping to find Michonne somewhere but all I find is a walker every now and then.

By the time I'm done I'm panting and freaking out.

What do I do? What do I do?!

Do I tell Rick? Rick has to know where Michonne is.

I run my fingers through my hair anxiously.

No. Rick was busy with Hershel.

What about...

Daryl.

I run upstairs to look for Daryl.

Hershel stares at me with a frown when he sees me running through and out of the cell block. I ignore his call.

I see Rick and Daryl talking and yell my brother's name.

Rick turns around while my brother frowns. I get close to them and breath a few times

"Are you ok?" Rick asks.

"No." I breathe. "No, I...I..."

Fuck, Mac! Speak damn it!

Daryl says frowning "What's wrong?"

"I can't find Merle, or Michonne." I say anxiously "They're gone."

Both guys look at each other. Their expressions changed to a surprised and worried one.

"Come on." Daryl says and runs inside...

We follow him.

* * *

"He was in here." Daryl says once we look around the laundry room. Again, no sign of Merle in here. "Said he was looking for drugs." My brother pauses and shrugs "Said a lot of things, actually."

"Like what?" Rick asks

"Said that you were gonna change your mind." Daryl mutters looking everywhere. He kneels on the corner and lifts pieces of wire "Here we go. he took her here. They mixed it up."

"You think he's with the governor?" I ask him

He looks up to me trying to calm me down. I chew on my lower lip so bad I feel it about to bleed.

"Damn it!" Rick says and starts heading out

Daryl and I follow him

"Wait, where are you going?" I ask

"I'm going after him." He says

"You can't track for shit." My brother growls while we walk back outside.

"Then the both of us." I tell him. I ain't letting Merle do something stupid. I ain't letting the whole Atlanta situation happen again.

"No," Daryl stops me "just me. They're gonna come back here. Y'all need to be ready. You stay with Rick. Keep the group safe"

I shake my head "No. Daryl, you're not going alone. The governor..."

"Do I have to lock you in a fucking cell?!" My brother yells at me. I freeze.

"N-no..." I can see how stressed he is... He even looks scary...

Daryl then looks at Rick "watch her. She tries anything, lock her in. I mean it."

Rick nods after a moment of hesitation while I stare at Daryl in shock.

"You've got to be kidding!" Sometimes I just feel my life sucks, but I'm starting to think theres something that enjoys watching me suffer.

"Stay put" He growls and starts running.

We stand there watching Daryl leave the prison yard.

I feel as if my stomach was twisting and tightening inside me. So bad I feel ike I wanna throw up.

Worse than when we escaped the farm; and then I feel a hand on my shoulder.

I take the deepest and hardest breath I've had in a long time and watch my youngest brother disappear into the woods."I'm gonna regret staying here..."

I feel Ricks eyes on me now. I shake my head

"I cant let him go alone" I mutter and think of how I'm gonna do to catch up with Daryl.

Rick takes a moment to reply to that.

"Yeah," he sighs "I need your help with something"

As soon as he looks away or gets distracted, I'm tracking Daryl. I just cant stay here and let my brothers die...

"Lead the way" I look at him absently and follow him back to cellblock D.

* * *

"I took Carl's gun for a while. Dropped it behind that bunkbed so we wouldn't get it after what happened last time" Rick mentions stopping in front of a cell. "My hand's too big to get it."

Is he serious about this?

"Why don't you just move the bed?" I frown

"Its stuck. Wont budge"

I roll my eyes and walk forward. I cant wait to get out of his sight.

I get on mattress and get my hand in between the wall and the bed. I reach as far as I can

Then it happens.

I hear the bars closing. He just locked me in...

You've got to be fucking kidding me...

I turn to look at Rick angrily, hearing the rattle of the keys in his hands.

He only looks at me with his hands on his hips.

"Theres nothing under the bed, is it?" I ask without moving. He shakes his head

"I had to get you in somehow. You would've ran out first thing"

"Son of a bitch" I chuckle getting up from the bed

"Better safe than sorry" he says and walks away

"Wait!"

"Ill let you know if I know something" he says making me roar angrily

* * *

"WAIT!"

I push my knife against the lock. I hit it hard with my hand as the last thing I try to get outta here.

To my surprise and marvelous luck the knife slips and I feel how something enters and cuts my palm right in the middle as well as my hand being crushed in between the lock and a bar.

I throw the knife away in anger and pain and kick the gate until my hand is free once more.

As soon as I look down I growl seeing how blood starts dripping off my hand. I can even see what I think is a piece of bone deep in there.

I turn to see if it was the knife since I've killed a lot of walkers with it, but it is clean. The only thing with my blood on it is the lock on the cell.

I feel relieved that my infected knife didn't touch my blood.

I grunt taking one of the old sheets on the bunkbed to wrap my hand in it.

I need to get out of here but I've tried all I know to unlock the cell. Its really hard to work with one hand...

At least I can move my fingers so no real damage seems to have happened to my hand.

Rick made sure I didn't have anything that could possibly let me out of here.

I kick my knife to the corner.

I hear footsteps coming and turn around. I give Rick a death glare when he stops walking to look at me.

"How you holding up?" He asks

"This sucks, Thank you."

He nods and asks about the blood-stained sheet around my hand and wrist. "What happened to your hand?"

"Bad decisions."

"Thats what I thought"

"How long 'til I can come out?"

"Couple hours." He says "or until Daryl gets back"

"You don't get it." I walk closer to him slowly and putting my hands on the sheriff looks at me silently "Daryl might not get back if you don't do something"

Rick nods.

I frown and ask feeling my blood starting to boil. "You said it yourself! The governor wants us all dead, and you're not out looking for them?!"

"Can't do that"

"The fuck you cant!" I roar

"Daryl told you to stay put" he interrupts me.

"Locked in here?!"

He replies angrily "I can't be babysitting you"

"Then don't." I hiss "unlock the cell"

He looks down for a few seconds and shakes his head. "I don't have time for this."

"No one has time, Rick. They're my brothers and I wont let them die out there just because you want to keep me in here." I growl looking deeply into his eyes

"Daryl's call"

"unlock. the cell."

"Or what? The first thing you're gonna do is go out and get yourself killed"

"open it!"

"You're not going anywhere" he says and starts walking away

"Fuck you, you cant leave me in here forever!"

"Beth's downstairs if you need anything"

"I need to go find them!" I yell "you're killing them!"

I push the gate and shake it angrily. He walks downstairs and out of my sight.

"Rick!" I start crying out of anger. I scream "RICK!"


	40. And then there were none

I sit in the corner of the celł and wait for someone to tell me whats going on out there.

I am so frustrated...

I'm angry, I'm worried...

I hold my knife tightly in my hand moving it up and down every now and then. The blade makes contact rhythmically with the concrete floor causing a slight sound that shows anxiety

Here he comes again. I can hear the keys rattling closer and closer up the stairway.

I look up.

Maggie approaches me with the keys in her hand.

"Are they back?" I ask

Maggie shakes her head. She approaches the cell and starts unlocking it

I only stare at her holding my knife tighter and wait for her to open.

I put the weapon on the bed.

Beth comes in locking the gate behind her.

"What are you doing here?" I ask backing up a couple steps "I could knock you out and get the keys, you know that"

"Try it" she says simply

I scoff. I was not expecting that answer.

"So, Rick wont let you out right now." She says but I don't reply. "I brought you this" She hands me a blue pill.

Only then I notice the water and first aid kit on her.

"Whats that for?" I nod towards the pill. I don't feel like trusting her

"Antibiotics. Just in case"

I look down to my hand. Its still wrapped in the bed sheets and I'm sure those weren't really clean.

The funny thing is that I don't feel the wound on it.

"Don't know if I need stitches" I mutter making Maggie smirk when I accept the medicine and take the water to swallow it.

She walks closer and sits on the bed opening the first aid kit and getting out a small bottle of alcohol.

This reminds me of Daryl 'cleaning' my arm when I got bit. I really hope he's ok...

I cant stop thinking about my brothers.

I sit next to her and extend my hand to her so she begins unwrapping it.

She looks at it and touches around the cut slightly.

"You're good. Its not that bad"

I wish Maggie would just leave me alone, but she just wants to help.

She pours some alcohol on my hand making me hiss in pain.

"Sorry." She mumbles but keeps doing it slowly. "part of the process..."

"Yeah, keep going"

"Look umm" she thinks for a moment and starts stitching my hand after burning the needle with a lighter. I look away "you gotta be careful if you want it to heal quickly"

I nod.

"No big shootings for a while..."

"What do you mean?"

"It means you need to change your weapon for something with no kickback" she explains

I growl.

* * *

"There." She finishes cutting the thread and starts bandaging my purplish hand.

After that she asks. "How are you feeling?"

Worried? Depressed? Anxious? Physically like my brain is jello?

A mix of all four maybe.

Do I really have to reply? I look at her and notice through the corner of my eye how she shakes her head. I notice the ring on her finger.

"Glenn gave you that?"

"Yeah." She says concentrating on the shiny object

I nod and look away. At least something good is happening to her "Thank you."

"For what?."

"The bandage "

"Its nothing." Maggie nods and talks with a soft tone "Rick's trying to keep you safe"

"He's not trying to keep me safe. He's doing this cause Daryl told him to do so if I tried to follow him. Rick's afraid Daryl loses his mind cause he needs him against the governor." I mutter looking down.

"Rick cares about you"

"He sure does" I scoff. There's a pause.

"What about Merle?"

I shrug. "What about him?"

"Michonne made it back a few minutes ago" I feel Maggie staring at me.

"And y'all don't think on looking for Daryl at least?!" I say feeling my stomach tightening "What if Merle found the governor?"

"Merle was never one of us anyway"

What the fuck? I tighten my jaw

I get up and point to the entrance "get out."

She frowns confused

"You didn't know my brother,. You didn't trust him, and you don't even know why he did the things he did. " I growl . "He IS as part of the group just like me or Daryl or any of y'all are. So you better shut up, and get the fuck out"

Maggie nods and she stands up. "I'll leave the door unlocked."

I chuckle "fuck you"

The oldest of the Greene sisters opens the cell and walks out leaving the gate open. I stare at her while she walks away.

I sit back on the bed staring at the emptiness on the floor before thinking on the open door.

I sigh.

* * *

Its almost dark now. They're not back yet.

Rick and Glenn are in a nearby tower so even if I wanted to escape they would catch me easily, plus, I don't feel like climbing a fence with my hand hurting like this.

Rick saw me when I came out here but didn't say anything about it.

I sit on one of the tables with my arms crossed over it and rest my head on them wondering what I'm gonna do if I never see my brothers again.

I would definitely fall into deep depression... Perhaps deeper than the one I'm already feeling.

I'm too tired to go look for them, and too tired of being here waiting to see what happens.

I'm just exhausted. In all senses of the damn word.

I sniffle holding the urge to cry and stay like that, waiting with fucking tears in my eyes until I see Rick opening the door of the tower and running to the field while Glenn calls my name from up there.

I look up to where he is.

"Look who's here!" He tells me making my heart beat faster.

I turn my head in Ricks direction and see Daryl coming through the field with the sheriff by his side.

I stand up and move a few steps closer.

He looks tired

He just stumbles to where I am ignoring what our leader is asking him

Merle is not coming with him...

A deep unexplainable pain starts filling my chest leaving me unable to breathe or react to whats happening. I just watch feeling this heavy weight inside me.

The two men come into the yard.

Glenn comes out of the tower and closer to my brother to see if Daryl is fine. They talk to him, touch him, follow him, but he just walks in my direction.

I look at him without moving. Just standing there, feeling completely numb.

I don't have to wait long for my brother to be right in front of me looking down. Emotionless face, broken eyes. I know whats happening but refuse to accept it.

Daryl takes a deep breath.

His clothes are full of blood. Merle's blood?

My eyes feel wet, my heart races, I wait for him to say something but no sound leaves his mouth.

"Did you...?" I ask with broken voice

Hell, I know he found him. But I just need Daryl to look at me, and when he does I see how hard it must've been for him too.

I get no response from him. Only a painful look that tells me all I need to know.

I shake my head and finally tears start running down my face.

No, this is wrong! Merle cant die!

I give a step back to keep the valance I feel I'm losing.

I look around me in complete shock. Rick and Glenn are still here...

If Rick hadn't locked me maybe I could've done something. I should've been out there with him

"This is your fault!" I roar and feel my brother wrapping his arms around me before I launch myself against the sheriff, who only looks at me with an apologetic face.

My brother swallows hard but stays quiet while I try to reach the man in front of me.

It's all his fault!

"You killed him!" I fight Daryl's arms with tears in my eyes. "You fucking killed him!"

Daryl pins me down to the floor until I stop moving and sob. I'm too tired to get back on my feet

Daryl tells Glenn to get Rick inside.

I watch how they walk away and the sad look they give me before leaving my sight.

I breathe shakily.

I feel so hopeless.. So broken.. "H...he..." I whisper in between sobs, not being able to get the words 'he's dead' out of my throat.

I cling to my brothers arms and melt into tears

Merle always said Dixons can't cry. He said we are way too tough for that. Crying is for pussies and no one in my family are pussies.

It's like rule number one for us but mostly my brothers.

Thats why I've never heard Daryl cry... Not even now.

I feel his chest against my side raising and falling heavily with the same pain and anger I'm feeling, Maybe even more, but not a single sound comes from him.

I sob.

Daryl hugs me tightly resting his head on mine quietly.

I'm sorry...

Merle...


	41. This Side of Paradise

Its morning already.

Apparently Rick got this... 'Brilliant' idea While I was locked in my cell.

I don't know much about it. But I heard we're just gonna make it seem as if we were all gone and then ambush Woodbury once they arrive... Or something like that...

The walkers are part of the group today.

They're inside now. They'll help us get rid of the governor.

So, we're all packing our things. Half of us are gonna hide out of the prison while the other half gets the job done.

Not like I have a lot of stuff anyway. Or like I have much to lose anymore...

I'm sitting on my bunk bed, alone in the small cell, holding the picture I had in my bag. The one with me and my brothers on it.

Just thinking of old times. Shitty, but at the same time good, old times.

A tear falling on the image snaps me out of my thoughts.

I hate it. Crying, I mean. I need to stop.

I wipe my face with one of my hands and get up putting the picture inside my bag.

When I close it, the sound of the zipper echoes through the now empty cell block. I hang it on my shoulder and take a deep breath.

I make my way out and head to where Daryl is avoiding to look at anyone in the eye. I'm not in the mood to face anyone.

I feel like shit. Not physically though. Hershel says my hand will heal quickly, if I dont abuse it.

I'll be fine. I just have a broken hand.

I mean I feel like shit after Merle... All I wanna do is sleep. I'm always tired.

But I'm also tired of everything involving this ridiculous and childish war with a guy who's just making us suffer for his own entertainment. I just want this to be over.

I want Rick to stop playing the Governor's stupid little game.

Out here everyone is getting ready, doing their thing. I guess I'll just do mine, then. I'll get my stuff in the car like I was told to do, and then I'll just watch for Hershel, Beth, Carl and the ass kicker.

Thats what Daryl asked me to do.

I would love to stay with him and make sure he's safe, but I just don't feel like arguing with him right now and I cant use a rifle. He's not in the mood for any of that crap and I'm not either.

I'll help him by cooperating and going easy on him... For now.

I see Rick and Glenn whispering to each other. Rick looks back at me and nods slightly while Glenn only offers a soft smirk.

I look down ignoring them and keep walking. Like I said, I'm not in the mood.

I keep walking to where Daryl is talking to Carol and notice how he's still looking a little absent and sad, but still looks better than I do. I stop walking next to him.

My brother tells Carol to wait a second and turns around to pick his bag from the floor. He looks for something in it while I wait patiently.

He pulls some bolts out and hands them and his crossbow to me. I asked if I could have it for a while.

I'm surprised he even accepted.

"Watch your hand" He mutters. Yeah, the stitches hurt a bit.

I look up to him. I nod and take the weapon carefully.

"Hey," he says before letting go of it "not a scratch on it"

I smirk tiredly

Daryl Removes his hand from his beloved crossbow. He clears his throat.

"Careful, you" I tell him. He smirks.

I turn around and move now to where Hershel is putting some stuff on the car trunk.

I hand Hershel my things before he closes the trunk but keep the crossbow. He looks at me asking silently if I'll put that one in too.

I shake my head and tighten my hand around it.

* * *

" _Merle?"_

 _I dont like being here... What if something pops out from under the bed or something...?_

 _I gasp._

 _What if IT comes out and..._

 _"Merle!" I whisper and shake my brother anxiously_

 _I dont wanna die I dont wanna die I dont wanna die!_

 _"Merle! Wake up!"_

 _"What?" Merle groans not even bothering to open his eyes._

 _"I heard something in my room..." I whisper with shaky voice._

 _Merle groans again._

 _I can hear Daddy snoring in his room. That means its way past midnight._

 _"Theres nothing in your room."_

 _"I swear! Sounded like steps or something"_

 _"A squirrel. Go to sleep."_

 _"Fuck no!"_

 _"God damn it, girl, what've I told you about your language? You don't talk like that, you're five" He says finally opening his eyes and sitting on the bed facing me._

 _"What if it's real? What if it's in my room?" I insist_

 _My brother rolls his eyes "what if whats in your room?"_

 _"The doll."_

 _He rolls his eyes. "Did you watch that movie with Daryl? I told you not to do it..."_

 _"Yeah, but you said you watched it too and you ain't scared!"_

 _"Yeah, cause I can tell the difference between a movie and reality. Chucky is not real"_

 _"Well, if you're so sure, go check my room then."_

 _My brother grunts and pulls me up to the bed. "I'm not checking your room, princess."_

 _"Why not?"_

 _" cause I'm too lazy to do it"_

 _"Check your room then"_

 _"Mac, I'm sure there's nothing threatening in here but you"_

 _"Pleeeeease?" I whine_

 _Merle sighs_

 _He throws his blanket aside, stands barefoot and looks in every direction, even up toward the roof._

 _He opens his closet, checks under the bed, out the window and looks at me._

 _"No dolls" He opens the door and looks down the hall. "Still no dolls. See?"_

 _I nod "but Daryl said It'd wait for me to fall asleep to get in my room and chop off my toes" I say worried "I like my toes as they are"_

 _"Shit, Daryl..." He growls angrily "Come here, princess." He gets on the bed by my side "listen to me," I nod "I'll let you stay here just for tonight, ok?"_

 _I nod once more_

 _"I'll kick Daryl's ass in the morning for scaring you"_

 _"Is Daryl gonna be ok?"_

 _"Go to sleep"_

 _"But the doll..."_

 _"Mac, there ain't no doll!"_

 _"You promise?"_

 _"shut up and close your eyes."_

 _I nod._

 _I lay on the bed. Merle does the same putting the blanket on both of us. Move closer to him._

 _I take his arm and pull it so it's around me. Merle sighs_

 _I feel safe now._

* * *

An annoyed growl brings me back from my memory only to find myself sitting in the woods with Daryl's bow on my legs

"What are we even doing here?" I hear Carl complaining angrily and walking in circles while I sit on the floor leaning on the back tire of the Hyundai.

I wonder whats the deal with him

Next to me is Beth on the back seat with the door open to let her legs hanging out of the car into a comfortable position with Judith cooing in her arms, and then there's Hershel, watching Ricks son with a concerned look on his face.

"We could be helping." Carl growls one more time.

"Patience, son." Hershel tells him "your father knows what he's doing"

Carl growls again.

I put my hand on the crossbow after hearing people screaming. Gunshots starting. Panic coming from the prison.

I Think of Daryl. I hope he's fine.

I see Carl and Hershel hiding behind some trees but looking at all the chaos in the distance but I stay sitting on my place. I watch how Beth joins them.

Carl shakes his head. "I should be there..."

I scoff pulling my legs closer to me to rest my head on my knees in what looks like an awkward and sad fetal position and we stay like that until the screaming and gunshots stop.

* * *

"They're gone." Hershel turns around and tells me. But truth is, I don't really care...

I nod while Beth takes Jude back in the car followed by her father. Carl keeps looking through the branches for a bit longer and then walks to where we are.

I stand up to get back in the car.

I frown. Something is approaching us. I can hear it.

I look up to our leader's son and ask "Is it you?"

He stops walking too.

"What?" He asks back looking confused, yet still pissed at something.

I shake my head "I thought I heard..."

And suddenly another kid comes out of nowhere.

He's maybe my age. One year older maximum.

I react immediately. I rush forward pulling Daryl's crossbow up and towards the stranger.

Damn, the crossbow's heavy. I wonder how Daryl runs all the time with it on his back.

"Woah, woah, woah, woah!" The kid says with his hands, and rifle up the moment we raise our weapons to protect Beth and Hershel. "Don't shoot!"

"shut up" I demand

"Drop your weapon, son" I hear Hershel say. I don't know if he means Carl or the other guy.

I chew on my lower lip, aiming to his forehead.

"Ok." The guy says putting his rifle on the floor "ok."

He raises both hands and looks at us seeming terrified. I keep looking at him with hatred.

Theres a tense silence surrounding us for a short moment. I think of a billion things per second trying to decide whether to kill him or not.

I put my finger on the trigger and stare at the guy in front of me . I look at him in the eye.

I can see how scared he is and how much he regrets coming with the Governor, then I realize I cant kill him. I just cant.

I lower the crossbow.

A loud shot from Lori's old revolver is heard then, startling all of us. Blood splatters everywhere and I see how the kid in front of me drops to the ground like a rag doll with half his head blown by the close impact.

I look back at Carl in shock.

* * *

I follow the others inside the cell block to meet with the rest of the group. The crossbow is hanging on my back. I walk towards the entrance to find my brother, but seems like he found me first.

Daryl walks out of the cellblock and approaches me. I look at him before taking his weapon off my back.

"You ok?" He asks

I nod a few times but keep quiet. I hand him the crossbow.

Daryl looks at it for a moment and then shakes his head. "I'll let you know when I need it."

I look down quietly and hang the weapon on my back once more.

My brother frowns and tilts his head slightly "whats wrong?"

I sigh.

"Carl killed a kid from Woodbury..." I mumble sadly and think of the scene that happened in the woods.

I see how Daryl's tough expression softens. I see how he's still having a hard time since yesterday and understands how I'm feeling.

He looks kind of worried now "was he threatning y'all?"

I shake my head

"he was scared. Lowered his gun, and Carl just..." I take a moment. I dont want to cry again. "He blew his brains out as if it was nothing... Cold blood and shit"

My brother looks around and thinks for a moment.

"You?"

He shrugs "as well as I can be."

I nod

He nods towards a tower and starts walking. I understand and follow.

* * *

We walk to one of the ward towers. The one thats in the back of the cellblock where you can't see nothing but the woods.

The tower itself looks old and isolated. It makes me wonder why Daryl want me to follow him in there.

He opens the old door and holda it open for me. I walk in and up hearing him close the door and walk up the stairs as well.

Its really dark but theres enough light to see the steps.

Upstairs the tower looks like it was abandoned even before the outbreak. Theres some sort of green mold on one of the walls extending to a console with some controls that I think were for the lights outside. I stop to look around.

Daryl walks past me to the outer area and leans on the old reeling looking at the woods

I see a blanket on the floor, Daryl's poncho and some bolts broken and scattered along with some more broken bottles of what I think is booze.

Daryl spent the night here. I wonder where he got the alcohol from.

Theres a bit of blood on the wall too...

I look up to where Daryl is and wonder what happened. I walk to where he is and stop by his side leaning on the railing like him.

I see his knuckles bloodier than usual.

He punched the wall?

I turn my head to face him "why did you bring me here?"

He shrugs. "Its quiet"

I stare at him for a moment before he looks down to me.

"we're gonna go to Woodbury."

I don't like the idea, but still nod.

"Don't hold it against Rick." He says

I frown. "Why?"

"I told him to lock you in if necessary"

"Im not holding it against anyone." I clarify "I'm just mourning my brother"

Daryl nods. "If we can call it that.."

We stay silent for a few seconds. He's right, Its quiet here.

"Hey," I look at him once more "there's something thats been bothering me..."

He looks at me.

"Yesterday... " I say with broken voice "was he a walker?"

Daryl blinks and looks down. He nods silently after hesitating.

I take a deep breath "Did you put him down?"

My brother tightens his jaw slightly. he looks away for a moment before walking back inside the tower giving me the answer.

I sigh. I look out of the prison wondering how it all really happened...

I sniff feeling like shit and wipe the tears off my eyes for the millionth time today. I never thought I'd go through this crap.

To me Merle was toughest guy out there. He seemed even immortal.

But now, one moment he's here and the other.. He's just gone...

Daryl comes back by my side but I don't even look at him. That is, until he takes my arm carefully.

I turn my head to see whats going on.

My brother puts something on my wrist and ties it carefully. I wait patiently for him to take his hand off and see what it is.

When he takes his hands off I look up at him in shock with my eyes still wet.

Merle's wristband...

Daryl gives me a sad and still angry look. "That fucker's gotta pay"

"I know" I put my bandaged hand on the wristband and nod slightly to my brother. "Thank you"


	42. Stand by me

"What the fuck...?" I whisper when I see the trucks ahead and the people that had attacked us hours before as walkers.

Rick, Michonne, Daryl and I left the prison to finish business with the governor, but why is everyone dead?

Our bike stops and so does Rick on a gray pickup truck behind us.

Daryl and I get down the motorcycle, he gets the crossbow and hands it to me. Back at the prison he said I can keep it for now until I at least the kickback of my beretta without ripping out the skin healing in my palm.

"All yours" He nods towards a walker when I take the bow and then takes a rifle to follow me and Rick, who already walked past us.

I shoot the walker my brother nodded to with a perfect headshot that honestly don't know where it came from.

Luck, I guess.

Michonne slices three heads with one swing leaving me amazed by it and Rick stabs one last walker that was just staring at us as if trying to figure out if we were worth eating.

my brother pats my back while walking closer to Rick with his rifle ready and looking around to make sure there are no surprises

Suddenly a loud BANG! is heard behind him making me look on his direction with the crossbow up instantaneously. I thought something was happening to him. It scared me.

We all look up on the big truck that was behind Daryl and see a woman looking at us through the window.

Rick raises his python towards her too. Michonne opens the door and Daryl helps her down quickly checking on the truck with his knife up and slamming the door once shes down.

She looks scared... What should I do?

I look at Rick waiting for an answer. I see him lowering his weapon and meeting my eyes; he shakes his head.

I lower the crossbow.

Guess we got ourselves a free ticket to Woodbury

* * *

"Tyreese!" The woman we found yells, getting on her feet, her arms up.

Her name is Karen and she told us everything. How the governor lied to them.

She says she's scared and she needs to go back to Woodbury to warn the others in her group. She also said Andrea tried to run back to us, but thats the last time she saw her...

I wonder if she happened to end up like Merle... I better don't think about him right now...

Right now we're kneeling behind an old vehicle because Woodbury still has someone on watch that tried to kill us, but Karen seems to know them and is trying to make them stop.

This chick might be useful after all. And people on watch is a good sign that tells us the governor is not here yet.

"It's me!" Karen tells her friends. Shes about to yell 'don't shoot' but Rick pulls her back down behind the vehicle.

Daryl, Michonne and I listen patiently and wait to see what happens. Then comes the answer from the other side of the wall.

A male voice calls Karen twice. He asks "are you okay?"

"I'm fine!" She says pushing Rick away to get on her feet once more. She approaches the wall slowly with her arms up

"Where's the Governor?" The man asks

"He fired on everyone." Karen says finally putting her arms down "He killed them all..."

There is a brief pause and then the man talks once more

"Why are you with them?"

"They... They saved me."

Again, the people from behind the wall keeps quiet. The three of us look at Rick with wide eyes when he thinks for a second and yells "We're coming out!" and looks at us.

I look behind me. Daryl shakes his head.

'bad idea' his look says.

"We're coming out." He repeats and gets up.

My brother curses under his breath and nods to me as a 'follow me' sign before he stands up as well, coming out of the opposite side of the car Rick went.

I nod and follow.

Michonne follows Rick; both putting their hands up while Daryl keeps pointing his rifle to the wall, until Rick gives him a death glare.

My brother rolls his eyes. He puts his hands up as well.

I raise my injured hand, leaving the other one to hold the heavy crossbow on one side of my body as we approach the wall and the wooden gates open.

Daryl lowers one arm, but leaves the rifle pointing up.

"What are you doing here?" A black man wearing an old beanie walks close to Rick and asks.

Our leader lowers his hands. He looks at us and nods so we do the same.

"We were coming to finish this" he replies and the black man's expression changes to fear "until we saw what the Governor did."

"he killed them?" He asks looking worried

Rick nods.

All the hostility around us is no longer here. Rick and the man, Tyreese, talk calmly but alert.

"Karen told us Andrea hopped the wall going for the prison. She never made it." Our leader comments looking for an answer "She might be here."

Tyreese blinks confused. He looks at each and everyone of us looking nervous and then mumbles "come inside..."

"Thanks" Rick mumbles back politely.

* * *

I adjust the crossbow in both my hands and follow everyone

"This is where he had Glenn and Maggie." Rick notes while we walk through the same corridors we escaped about a month ago.

Time goes by so fast...

"The Governor held people here?" Tyreese asks surprised.

"He did more than hold them." Daryl mutters and then we stop when we see the door.

Same heavy metal door, but this time theres blood under it coming from the other side.

Andrea...

"Will you open it?" My brother asks Rick absently; Rick nods and approaches the door.

* * *

"One, two..." Rick opens the door.

Milton's undead body was put down and is now lifeless on the floor. A pair of pale feet can be seen on one side of the room.

"Andrea!" Michonne runs inside

"I tried to stop them." We hear her weak voice say and walk in as well after a short moment of hesitation

Rick kneels in front of her and I try to approach her but Daryl stops me. He shakes his head slightly and keeps looking at Andrea.

"You're burning up." Michonne says worried.

I watch how the pale woman takes her coat and pulls it to the side. Milton got her... pretty bad...

I cringe when I see the wound. Sadness takes over me once more.

Not Andrea too...

She sighs

"Judith, Carl, the rest of them..."

"Us." Rick points out "The rest of us."

Thats what he tells everyone, and Andrea knows it

She chuckles "Are they alive?"

"Yeah, they're alive."

Andrea relaxes a bit. She looks at Michonne with thankful eyes.

Michonne is crying. I don't blame her, I know its hard to say goodbye, but at least she's able to.

I never had the chance to tell Merle how much I loved him... I never had the chance to say goodbye...

"It's good you found them." Andrea whispers to her weakly. Then she looks at Daryl and me "No one can make it alone now."

"We never could." He replies just loud enough for her to listen

Andrea looks down and then up at Rick "I just didn't want anyone to die."

Yeah well... Too late...

The sheriff nods sadly. They share understanding looks and Andrea keeps going "I can do it myself."

I just feel terrible for this. I was just starting to like Andrea, but she's right.

..better than being a walker

Michonne widens her eyes "No."

"I have to...While I still can." She pleads "I know how the safety works."

"Well, I'm not going anywhere." Michonne says making her nod. Then she tells our leader

"I tried."

"Yeah. You did." He puts a hand on her shoulder. He gives her a gun and gets up repeating before walking out "You did."

Daryl and I move outside; Andrea stops us before we leave the two friends alone. "I know what happened."

I look at her and try to hold the tears back while she gives me the same sad look. No words need to be said we both know what we mean.

She gives me a barely visible and weak smile

"Come on" my brother tells me putting his hand on my back and we walk out closing the door behind us, then stopping close to Rick and waiting quietly for the gunshot.

We don't wait long for it to happen and Andrea is gone as well

Daryl sits on the floor, closes his eyes tightly and covers his face with one of his hands while looking down.

Rick and Tyreese share sad looks.

I close my eyes taking a deep breath and holding Daryl's crossbow tightly.

He was right; Life's not fair. But thats just how it works...

* * *

Times goes by faster than I'd want it to go. It seems to me that only yesterday I saw my brothers after surviving a hospital full of walkers.

Now, Merle died two days ago.

The sun is starting to rise once more. We survived one more day.

I am glad we're back at the prison. I really need to rest, take some time off this shit we call life.

We ride up the field with Rick's truck behind us and after them, an old school bus full of people who were left behind in Woodbury.

I step down the motorcycle as soon as the revving of the engine stops and Rick parks by our side.

I approach the bus slowly feeling curious to see if they've been through all thats happened to us since we encountered their town.

Our people come out of the cell block wondering whats going on, and like me, they stare. I don't know what they're expecting.

The first ones to come closer are Glenn and Maggie, who closed the gates for us once we came in. Carol and Beth watch seeming surprised, and Hershel stands next to the entrance as if he knew what was going to happen

The people from Woodbury hesitate before they start coming down; Tyreese first. He helps the others

Women, children, even some other men that somehow got lucky enough to stay in the town instead of coming with the Governor.

All of them are confused. Scared. I can see in their eyes the pain of losing someone.

Regret.

I tighten my jaw and reach to my wrist just to feel Merle's wristband around it. Just to know its still there.

Just to feel safe

I hate when this kind of things happen to the group. It takes time to get back on our feet, and the worst thing is I don't know how to deal with this.

I feel so guilty for what happened...

I feel I could've done something if I hadn't left Merle's side...

Guilt is the worst feeling in the world and it hurts far worse than any other. It eats you from the inside.

When the last person comes down the bus, Rick walks closer to Tyreese. He greets them and follows them back in; after them, our group members follow.

Rick and I share looks when he walks past me. He's still has that apologetic look, but still gives me a small nod making sure everything is fine

I nod back.

Its all as good. as good as it can be.

I keep watching until no one is left outside. I look back at the bridge where Rick said he saw Lori

I hear steps. Daryl comes next to me and after a quick glance at each other I smirk at him.

Right, Daryl is still here. As long s he's here, there's still hope.

We make our way to the cell block.

Someone's gotta watch his ass anyway.

* * *

 _ **Hello Again, People!**_

 _ **I really hope you liked this one. And let me tell you...**_

 _ **Y'all just read the last chapter of the story.**_

 _ **I hope you liked it and enjoyed it!**_

 ** _I ended it here because personally I dont like to read stories that are 50+ chapters long , so I tried to avoid that. But theres the possibility of a sequel if y'all want. Just let me know in the reviews._**

 ** _Thank you for reading my first story and for all the great reviews!_**

 ** _Let me know what you think of the story, the chapter, and the idea of a sequel._**

 ** _On a last note:_**

 ** _Enjoy season 7 and its hardcore premiere! Dont cry too hard, or break your television sets!_**

 ** _Y'all may riot._**

 ** _Bye bye! (:_**


	43. Extra- The baby

**Hey there!**

 **Just wanted to let everyone know that the sequel for this story is up now.**

 **Thats pretty much why I added a new chapter here... But since a mere author note is against the guidelines, I have to write something below this..**

 **This has nothing to do with walkers, and its just fresh outta my head. No edits, no nothing. It'll come out as I write it.**

 **Enjoy**

* * *

Merle and Daryl sat looking at the tiny thing babble and look around as if it was retarded. Merle had put it on the floor on top of a blanket to watch what the thing would do and give him time to think. He couldn't take a baby to work, what would that shit say about him?

"Where he at?" Daryl asked snapping him out of his thought. He knew automatically his younger brother talked about the old man.

"Court."

Daryl frowned "this morning I woke up hoping it was just a nightmare... Its still here"

Merle stared at him frowning even more and held the stare until Daryl looked down "And he will stay here. Cops said we have to keep him, then we'll keep him. I ain't letting the old man putting a finger on his tiny little baby ass either" Merle replied "get over it."

Daryl thought for a moment like replaying all his brother just said until he caught something "He? You checked?"

"No. Haven't touched the damn diaper. Just figured" Merle growled

He nodded and silence took over the place once more, except, again, for the baby and its cooing and babbling

Daryl rolled his eyes after a moment of frustration and only staring at the tiny human in a blue onesie and its huge dark blue eyes that looked too big for its head "I kinda wanna throw a something at it"

Merle glared at him "I kinda wanna throw something at you!"

Daryl growled and turned to look at his brother "The fuck's wrong with you? You taking care of a baby? Seriously, that ain't you, man"

"I ain't letting him die, Daryl. Just like I didn't let you die. He's blood"

Then they looked back at the thing and Daryl asked angrily

"So what are you gonna name him, if you're too sure its a boy? Blockhead?"

"Of course, Darlena. I'm naming my newborn baby brother Blockhead. Grow up!"

"That kid ain't no newborn. Kid must be at least 2 or three months"

"Papers said October 5th. Two months and a half"

The younger brother asked "Who's the mother?"

"Didn't say"

"Great...so?"

"So what?"

"Its your new pet. You can give him any name you want"

"You call him a pet one more time and I swear, Daryl..." Merle growled looking at him with anger, which made Daryl uncomfortable. Still he wanted to know how his brother was gonna name him. They couldn't keep calling it 'it' forever

"Fine. But seriously, shouldn't the old man name him?"

"He aint naming shit."

"So how you gonna name him?"

"I have no idea."

Both thought for a moment until Merle gave up "I don't know how to name him"

"You think I do?

"Well, you better figure that out!" Merle said pushing Daryl up

"What? How?" He frowned

"Go to the library. Baby section. Bring me ideas"

"Hell no! Fuck the..."

"Hell yes, Darlena! Unless you wanna change diapers!"

* * *

Daryl rolled his eyes.

"These are all dog names, Merle. I feel stupid doing this." Daryl mumbled flipping through the pages while Merle held the eating baby on his arms

"Good. Now, I wanna hear them"

"Ok, ugh..." He read quickly "Connor"

"No. Something else."

Daryl flipped the pages again not liking most of the names written on them. This was a waste of time and it all made him feel like an old lady choosing names for her cats, but as long as it kept Merle from acting like a total jerk...

Jerk.

Daryl thought.

J...

"Jack?"

"Daniels?" His brother laughed.

Daryl rolled his eyes "Jensen"

"Meanings!, give me meanings!"

"... God is gracious..."

"Next!"

Daryl chuckled

"Search through letter M"

"Alright...Mark, God of war"

"Oh, I like that one."

"So, Mark?"

"No! Big responsibility for such a tiny thing!"

Daryl grunted and kept reading

"Listen to this. This is a good one."

"Ok."

"Mac. Son of..." Daryl looked up to his brother. The baby babbled randomly from time to time.

"Son of who?" Merle frowned and the younger Dixon shrugged.

"Thats the thing. Doesn't say. Kinda fits him"

"Huh.." The oldest one thought about it.

"Plus, its short and easy to remember."

"Done. Mac it is."

Daryl felt thankful all the reading baby names baby daddy shit was over. He felt so... Girly.. Doing that

He smirked until Merle kept going and handed him the kid "I'll go take a piss. Watch him"

"Wait, No, Merle! I don't want the baby!"

* * *

Hours later, when the baby was back with Merle and stinking worse than dog shit, Daryl felt free and happy to be by himself getting things ready to go hunting the next morning with their uncle while his older brother had to change diapers.

The thought amused him a bit. He had something to mock Merle with for the next couple of years

Maybe having a baby brother wasn't that bad. Maybe he could just wait for him to grow a bit.

But the thought left just an annoying feeling when Merle called his name again. What was it now?

"Hey, Daryl did you.." Merle stopped abruptly causing Daryl to feel confused. He paused what he was doing and just yelled back

"What?"

"Do you wanna think of another name for her?"

His blood ran cold after realizing what Merle's words had just been. He cleared his throat and yelled back once more getting closer to the door and hoping he had just heard that wrong "Her?"

"Looks like Mac's a lady, baby brother"

Daryl kept thinking this was just wrong so he walked to where his siblings were and stood behind Merle "You're joking..."

"Mac's a lady" he repeated without looking back at him

"No fucking way!" Daryl rushed to his brother's side. He didn't want a sister! He was just getting to accept the idea of a baby brother, but a sister?!

Girls need more care, they are so delicate! Girls have fucking periods! They can get pregnant!

What the fuck were they gonna do with a girl?!

"Unless I missed the sausage. Shes got none" Merle growled

"What the hell?" Daryl watched in horror "well, Fuck you, Merle! I ain't taking care of all that shit... And I ain't reading more fucking names!"


End file.
